ATTORNEY-GENERAL

CPS Direct

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General what data the Crown Prosecution Service records on the call response time of charging lawyers at CPS Direct.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) measures the percentage of calls answered by CPS Direct within three minutes and the average queuing time of all calls received.

Domestic Violence

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General how many restraining orders were imposed following the (a) conviction and (b) acquittal of a defendant for domestic violence in each year from 2007-08 to 2012-13.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not hold a central record of sentences imposed on convicted defendants or orders imposed on acquitted defendants, including restraining orders. Data on sentencing outcomes and court orders are captured by Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service, part of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) and official statistics on sentencing and court orders are maintained by the MOJ.
	For CPS to obtain the information requested would require a manual search of CPS case files involving a charge of domestic violence over the six year period and would incur disproportionate cost.

Witnesses

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Attorney-General what recent surveys or studies the Crown Prosecution Service has carried out on (a) the level of victim and witness satisfaction with the quality of service provided by its witness care units and (b) the morale of staff at its witness care units.

Oliver Heald: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not conduct a national survey to assess the level of victim and witness satisfaction with the service provided by the witness care units (WCUs).
	The CPS also does not conduct specific surveys of morale in WCUs. However, the CPS participates in the annual cross-civil service People survey and achieved a three point increase in its employee engagement index to 54% in 2013. We are unable to disaggregate the data to isolate results for those staff who work in the WCUs.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Arts: Business

Andrew Bingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to help small and medium-sized arts organisations increase their business and marketing skills.

Edward Vaizey: We are supporting small and medium-sized arts organisations in a number of ways including: Catalyst, a £100 million culture sector wide private giving investment scheme aimed at helping cultural organisations diversify their income streams and access more funding from private sources; Arts Council England’s Creative Industry Finance initiative, offering business development support and access to finance for creative industry enterprises; and, the Digital Research and Development Fund for the Arts, a £7 million fund to support collaboration between organisations with arts projects, technology providers and researchers. Projects use digital technology to enhance audience reach and/or develop new business models for the arts sector.

Arts: Finance

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who the recipients were of match funding provided by her Department and administered by the Creative Skillsets Creative Industry Fund since May 2010.

Edward Vaizey: Since April 2013, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has provided 29 companies with match-funding through the Skills Investment Fund (SIF). These companies are shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Company Name Sector 
			 A little Chaos Ltd Film 
			 August Street Films Ltd Film 
			 Big Talk Production Ltd High-End TV 
			 Brandnew-U Ltd Film 
			 Bypass Ltd Film 
			 Cutlass Productions Ltd Animation 
			 Electricity Film Productions Ltd. Film 
			 Encounters Animation 
			 Fettle Ltd Games and Animation 
			 Finblade Ltd Games 
			 Fire and Blood Productions Ltd High-End TV 
			 Four Door Lemon Ltd Games 
			 Honourable Woman Limited High-End TV 
			 King Rollo Films Animation 
			 Lady Shotgun Games 
			 Left Bank Pictures Ltd Film and High-End TV 
			 Little Chaos Limited Film 
			 Lupus Films Film and Animation 
			 More Muppets Productions Ltd Film 
			 Nomad Games Ltd Games 
			 Norfolk Film Ltd Film 
			 Phenomenon Pictures Ltd Film 
			 Pinewood Films No.7 Ltd Film 
			 RUN 71 Ltd Film 
		
	
	
		
			 Second Coming Productions Film 
			 Tiber Films Ltd Film 
			 UME7 Film 
			 Untitled 13 Ltd Film 
			 Yippee E Ltd Games

Arts: West Midlands

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  how much money the Arts Council spent per head of population in the District of Walsall in (a) 2013 and (b) 2012;
	(2)  how much the Arts Council spent per head of the population in the district of Birmingham in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013;
	(3)  how much the Arts Council spent per head of the population in the district of Dudley in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013;
	(4)  how much the Arts Council spent per head of the population in the district of Wolverhampton in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013;
	(5)  how much the Arts Council spent per head of the population in the district of South Staffordshire in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013;

Edward Vaizey: Arts Council England makes its funding decisions independently of Government and as such we do not hold the information requested. Nearly £3 billion pounds will be invested in the Arts over the lifetime of this Parliament.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will set out her Department’s priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work programme; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Grant: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W, available at:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140129/text/140129w0005.htm#1401306000008

Music: Young People

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what amount of funding her Department gave to each youth choir in each year since 2010.

Edward Vaizey: Funding from my Department to arts organisations is directed via Arts Council England, an arm's length body that makes its funding decisions independently of government. Therefore, my Department does not provide any direct funding to youth choirs. I understand that Arts Council England does not classify “youth choirs” as a specific funding category, but in the last three years it has provided over £40 million of funding to Youth Music, an organisation which provides young people with the opportunity to make music, including singing in choirs.

National Lottery: Liverpool

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many organisations in Liverpool have been in receipt of National Lottery grants in each of the last six years.

Helen Grant: Details of lottery grants awarded by parliamentary constituency and by local authority area since lottery funding began can be found on the Department for Culture Media and Sport's (DCMS) Lottery Grants Database, which is searchable at:
	http://www.lottery.culture.gov.uk/AdvancedSearch.aspx
	and uses information on lottery grants supplied by the lottery distributors.

Radio Frequencies

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when her Department plans to publish the consultation decisions on spectrum annual licenses.

Edward Vaizey: On 10 October 2013 Ofcom published its proposals for revising the spectrum licence fees; the consultation closed 16 January. Ofcom is now considering the responses, including evidence submitted before coming to a decision.

Radio Frequencies

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment her Department has made of the potential effect on 4G roll-out of four-to-five fold increases in spectrum annual licence for mobile telephone radio spectrum.

Edward Vaizey: The Government directed Ofcom in December 2010 to revise the fees paid for licences to use spectrum in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands following the auction of licences to use the 800MHz and 2.6GHz bands so as to reflect full market value. The statutory instrument making this direction was accompanied by an impact assessment which is available at:
	http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2010/3024/impacts
	The winners of the auction were announced on 20 February 2013 with the licences granted on 1 March 2013. On 10 October 2013 Ofcom published its proposals for revising these spectrum licence fees; the consultation closed 16 January. Ofcom will consider responses to its consultation carefully, including evidence submitted on the potential impacts of the proposed fees before coming to final decisions.

Regulation: Appeals

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on the timetable for a decision for the consultation on options for reform on the regulatory and competition appeals.

Helen Grant: DCMS officials have been working closely with officials in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills following the consultation on appeals that was held last year. We are considering the responses received and will publish the Government's response to the consultation in due course.

Telecommunications

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the potential economic benefits to consumers in the communications sector of proposals to streamline regulatory and competition appeals; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The Government published an impact assessment alongside its consultation on proposals to streamline regulatory appeals and this is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/207702/bis-13-924-regulatory-and-competition-appeals-impact_assessment.pdf
	This assessment is being updated in light of consultation responses received and we will publish that alongside the Government's response to the consultation in due course.

World War One: Anniversaries

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the projected cost under each cost heading is of the commemoration of the first world war.

Helen Grant: The Government’s WW1 centenary programme will run for four years and is composed of an array of different projects and partnerships that will commemorate those who sacrificed their lives. As part of the programme, there is a £40 million project to deliver new first world war galleries at the Imperial War museum’s London site; a £5.3 million project for secondary school visits to the battlefields of the western front; £5 million for the conservation and protection of war memorials and burial sites, and funding for a wide range of centenary-related projects up and down the country from the Heritage Lottery Fund who have so far allocated over £45 million. £10 million of lottery funding has been allocated to the 14-18 NOW cultural programme. In addition, the DCMS will deliver national events at key points during the four-year programme.

PRIME MINISTER

Publications

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 469W, on publications, whether relevant people includes individuals employed by the Conservative Party.

David Cameron: As I said in my previous answer, there has been no change in the practice followed by the previous Administration.

TRANSPORT

Buses: Overcrowding

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to ensure that the Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984 are meaningfully upheld; and what steps he is taking to ensure that infringements of overcrowding regulations are prosecuted.

Stephen Hammond: The Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984 are enforced by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), who are able to investigate any alleged breach of the regulations based on information provided to them. If it is found that an operator has failed to comply with the necessary legislative requirements, the relevant Traffic Commissioner may consider taking regulatory action against the operator under Section 17 of the Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981.

Bypasses: Wales

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with the Wales Office and the Welsh Government on a proposed bypass between Buttington and Shrewsbury.

Robert Goodwill: Transport Ministers hold regular discussions with their Welsh Government counterparts. Recent discussions have not specifically considered proposals for a bypass between Buttington and Shrewsbury.
	However, given the importance of transport investment to economic growth, the Department are always willing to discuss cross-border transport proposals with the Welsh Government.

Cambrian Railway Line

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with operating companies on increasing services on the Aberystwyth to Birmingham train.

Stephen Hammond: No recent discussions have been had with operating companies on increasing Aberystwyth to Birmingham services. The service between Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury, the majority of the route, is specified and funded by the Welsh Government.

Cycling: Accidents

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of accidents on the national trunk road network that led to the death or serious injury of a cyclist involved a heavy goods vehicle in each of the last five years.

Robert Goodwill: The proportion of reported road accidents on the English trunk road network1 that led to the death or serious injury of a cyclist which involved a heavy goods vehicle in each of the last five years is given in the table:
	
		
			   Of which: 
			  Accidents involving a killed or seriously injured pedal cyclist, on the English trunk road network1 Involved an HGV Percentage 
			 2008 36 5 14 
			 2009 38 6 16 
			 2010 51 6 12 
			 2011 42 5 12 
			 2012 54 12 22 
			 1 Based on the 2010 core trunk road network in England. Trunk road network for Wales and Scotland is not available. 
		
	
	Data for the year 2013 will be available in June 2014.

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to include information on the new drug driving offence in the driving theory test; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: We currently have no plans to include information about the new drug driving offence in the theory test. We make our position on drug driving clear in the Highway Code, rule 96, which states:
	“ … you MUST NOT drive under the influence of drugs or medicine. Check the instructions or ask your doctor or pharmacist. Using illegal drugs is highly dangerous. Never take them if you intend to drive; the effects are unpredictable, but can be even more severe than alcohol and may result in fatal or serious road crashes.”
	We have also taken steps to raise awareness of the new drug driving offence via social media.

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect on the pharmaceutical industry of the changes required to patient information leaflets following the introduction of the new drug driving offence; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: Changes to patient information leaflets are mandated through the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which is an executive agency of the Department of Health. However, officials are currently working with a number of pharmaceutical companies to fully understand the costs they expect to incur as a result of the new drug driving legislation. These will be included in an updated impact assessment that will be presented to Parliament alongside the finalised draft regulations.

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to ensure that patients taking long-term medication for chronic pain and similar conditions understand the medical defence under in the drug driving legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: In developing its proposed drug driving legislation the Government proposed limits for those controlled drugs which are commonly taken as medication but can also be abused at a level where a road safety risk is likely to occur. This was based on advice from a panel of medical and scientific experts. These limits are above the therapeutic range of the majority of doses used for treating medical conditions.
	However, we recognise some patients may have built up a tolerance to higher doses and thus not be impaired to drive but may be over the proposed limits. If the police are satisfied that a driver is taking their medication under the supervision and/or advice of a health care professional then the medical defence can be raised. Officials are therefore working with the Department of Health and the medical profession to produce guidance for health care professionals to use in discussion with their patients.
	The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has also asked the Market Authorisation Holders to update their patient information leaflets and summary of product characteristics. We will continue to consider other opportunities for communicating the position. However, it remains the driver's responsibility to refrain from driving if the medicine they are taking adversely affects their driving, as the police are still able to use the existing section 4 "impairment" offence.

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Health and (b) the Scottish Government on the effect of drug driving legislation on patients taking long-term medication for chronic pain and similar conditions; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the effect of drug driving legislation on patients taking long-term medication for chronic pain and similar conditions; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: Officials regularly meet and discuss the new legislation with their counterparts at the Department of Health. They have also met with their counterparts at the Scottish Government. However, it is the responsibility of the Scottish Government to consider the effect on patients in Scotland.
	A full consideration of any potential impact of the new offence on patients will be incorporated in the summary of the two consultations on the proposed drugs and their limits. We expect to publish the summary shortly after the consultation on the Government's proposed limit for amphetamine, which closed on 30 January 2014.

Driving: Licensing

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will meet Google to discuss the profits that company makes from copycat websites which charge for the application for and renewal of driving licences.

Stephen Hammond: The issue around copycat websites is a cross-Government one affecting many Departments and agencies. The Cabinet Office Government Digital Service (GDS) leads on this and has set up a cross-Government response group. The Department for Transport is represented on this group which is considering how to deal with the challenges raised.
	GDS is in ongoing discussions with Google on matters around these websites and the clarity of information provided to customers. A ministerial meeting with Google is scheduled for 19 February 2014.

Driving: Young People

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research his Department is undertaking on the potential (a) social and economic effects of Graduating Driver Licensing, (b) the effect of reforms to young driver training and testing on road safety and (c) road safety benefits of telematics.

Robert Goodwill: On 9 October 2013, the Transport Research Laboratory published research, which was commissioned by the Department, concerning the effectiveness of interventions such as graduated driver licensing.
	Also, in October 2013, the Driving Vehicle and Standards Agency (DVSA) published quantitative and qualitative research reports on evaluating the new learning to drive syllabus and process. In addition, the DVSA have undertaken a qualitative review of the introduction of independent driving to the driving test, which shall be published soon.
	We are also considering new research into how telematics can change the behaviour and attitudes of learner drivers and we will issue a paper when we have considered this further.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will set out his Department’s priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work programme; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Goodwill: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of jobs that will be created in the North West during the building phase of High Speed 2.

Robert Goodwill: The Secretary of State has made no estimate of the number of jobs that will be created specifically in the North West during the building phase of High Speed Two.
	HS2 Ltd has estimated there will be 14,600 construction jobs associated with building Phase One from London to Birmingham and 5,480 supply chain jobs. For Phase Two, planning is less advanced. HS2 estimate that, based on other large infrastructure projects, there will be 10,000 construction jobs and have not yet estimated the number of supply chain jobs.
	The Government intends to use procurement best practice from Crossrail and other infrastructure projects so that companies throughout the UK, including the North West, can bid for and win HS2 contracts.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the benefit that High Speed 2 will bring to small and medium-sized businesses in the North West.

Robert Goodwill: The Secretary of State has made no assessment of the benefits HS2 will bring specifically for small and medium-sized businesses in the North West. HS2 will benefit businesses though increased connectivity and capacity, both through HS2 services and from new or improved services, as a result of capacity released on the existing rail network. HS2 Ltd engaged KPMG to produce the September 2013 report “Regional Economic Impacts of HS2”, which estimates the potential benefits to business of improved rail connectivity. This analysis suggests that HS2 could increase annual output in the North West of England, measuring in terms of gross value added, by £1.1 billion to £2.5 billion in 2037 (measured in 2013 prices) as a result of improvements in business-to-business and labour connectivity in the region. This is the equivalent to an increase in annual output of 0.6% to 1.4%. However, the report looks at all businesses and does not separate the analysis to small and medium-sized businesses.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had about the effect of High Speed 2 on tourism and waterways in (a) the UK and (b) Eddisbury and Cheshire West.

Robert Goodwill: HS2 Ltd and the Department have been engaging with stakeholders, including the Canal and River Trust, Environment Agency, English Heritage, Natural England and local councils with regards to waterway assets potentially impacted by HS2. The impact of the scheme on tourism is subject to ongoing discussion with key stakeholders, however, any adverse impacts will be mitigated wherever practicable.

Highways Agency

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information his Department holds on the cost of the Highways Agency's recent switch to Microsoft Office 2010.

Robert Goodwill: The Highways Agency is currently undertaking a project to upgrade from Windows XP and Office 2003 to Windows 7 and Office 2010, to be completed before 8 April 2014. The total cost for this upgrade project for Office 2010 and Windows 7 is £2.010 million. The project is delivering both software upgrades to desktops etc. in a single activity. We do not have a separate breakdown of the cost of upgrading the Office software only.

Railways: Cumbria

Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with representatives of Northern Rail on passenger satisfaction in Cumbria.

Stephen Hammond: Officials from the Department for Transport meet with Northern Rail and the Passenger Transport Executives every four weeks to discuss franchise issues including train service performance and delivery. The PTEs also have regular meetings with Northern to discuss issues of local concern.
	The results of the Autumn 2013 National Passenger Survey-undertaken by Passenger Focus-was published in January 2014. The NPS results that Northern achieved will form an agenda item for a future meeting.

Railways: South West

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to ensure long-term investment in train services to the far South West.

Stephen Hammond: To inform future Government investment decisions for the period beyond the current Rail Investment Strategy to 2019, Network Rail is undertaking a long-term planning process in consultation with industry, local and other stakeholders to identify priorities for future development of the rail network including the far South West.

Railways: South West

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the impact on rail resilience of the Environment Agency's proposals for flood defences at Cowley Bridge, Exeter.

Robert Goodwill: The resilience of the rail network and repair of the infrastructure is a matter for Network Rail.

Railways: South West

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the budget for rail resilience works to the Devon stretch of the London Paddington to Plymouth rail link is for the current and next four financial years.

Stephen Hammond: This is a matter for Network Rail who are responsible for the national rail network. I understand that they are considering the best solutions to address flooding issues across the whole of the Great Western route.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to his answer of 24 January 2014, Official Report, column 362W on Re-employment, what the total cost was of those redundancy payments.

Stephen Hammond: The total cost of the redundancy payments for the 10 redundancies and retirements was £315,673.

Road Traffic Control

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if he will publish his Department's business case score for the Crown Point East bypass scheme in Denton, Greater Manchester submitted under the Pinch Point initiative;
	(2)  if he will publish his Department's business case scores for the projects awarded funding in the latest round of the Pinch Point initiative.

Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport announced 25 local Pinch Point Fund schemes in December 2013. The fund was oversubscribed with a total of 83 applications being received by the Department in which funding of over £177 million was being requested from a total available funding pot of £55 million.
	As part of the assessment of bids, a scoring system was used based on the Department’s Transport Business Case Model. Each bid was assessed independently by two assessors and a final moderated score calculated. The bids were ranked on the basis of the assessment criteria score. In addition, and due to the quality and number of bids submitted to the Department, bids were approved for funding only if they offered at least medium value for money.
	The Department for Transport is currently sending feedback letters to those authorities whose bid for funding was unsuccessful. These letters will provide individual scores to those authorities, including Tameside Council in respect of the Crown Point East bypass scheme.

Road Traffic Control: Schools

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will introduce legislative proposals to reduce road congestion around primary schools.

Robert Goodwill: Under part 2 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 ("the Act"), each English local authority is required to manage their road network to secure the expeditious movement of traffic on that network and to facilitate the same on the network of others.
	The Act is intended to provide better conditions for all road users through coordination and proactive management of the road network. It provides a key tool in the Government's strategy to tackle congestion through a range of initiatives including for example, better management of street works in order to minimise disruption and delivering fairer systems for civil parking and traffic enforcement (including the provision and enforcement of parking controls outside schools).
	The Act specifically places a Network Management Duty (NMD) on each local traffic authority to manage its road network to secure the expeditious movement of traffic on its own network and to facilitate the same on the network of other authorities. Coordination of activities and actions between authorities is an especially important element of network management.

Roads: Finance

Nicola Blackwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the criteria is for allocating funding to individual roads within strategic highway routes under his Route Based Strategy framework.

Robert Goodwill: The Government set out in July 2013 in 'Action for Roads', that the Highways Agency would be taking forward a programme of route-based strategies to identify investment priorities across the network and inform the selection of immediate projects and longer-term ambitions.
	Opportunities for investment will be prioritised and subject to a value for money and deliverability assessment as part of each route-based strategy, in line with current Government investment appraisal processes.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has provided to each local authority for the repair of potholes in each year since 2010.

Robert Goodwill: Local highways are the responsibility of local highway authorities. The Government announced in October 2010 as part of the spending review funding of £3 billion to local authorities in England (outside London) from 2011-12 to 2014-15 for highways maintenance which can be used for road repairs, including potholes. This funding is not ring-fenced and allows authorities the freedom to develop and implement solutions which best suit their local needs and priorities.
	In addition, and in recognition of the abnormal damage caused by the exceptional winter weather at the end of 2010, the Government provided in March 2011 a further £200 million to local highway authorities in England to repair potholes on the local road network damaged by the severe winter weather.
	The Department for Transport also announced in December 2012 a further £215 million for highways maintenance to be allocated over financial years 2013-14 and 2014-15. A table highlighting the funding being allocated to each local highway authority from 2011 to 2015 including additional funding has been placed in the Library of the House.
	The Department is also funding highways maintenance projects in Portsmouth, Birmingham, Sheffield, Isle of Wight and the London borough of Hounslow through the private finance initiative.
	Local authorities are also able to use revenue funding, allocated by the Department for Communities and Local Government through the revenue support grant for maintaining their local highways.
	In December 2013, the Department for Transport also announced it was providing CTC, the national cycling charity with funding of £30,000 to help develop its website and introduce a new App to help road users report potholes in their local areas.

Severn River Crossing

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of vehicles that used the (a) Severn Bridge and (b) Second Severn Crossing in 2013.

Robert Goodwill: We do not have total traffic data for 2013. For 2012 the estimated number of vehicles which used the Severn Bridge (M48) was 6,285,000 and the number of vehicles which used the Second Severn Crossing (M4) was 18,838,000.

Tolls

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what the (a) gross and (b) net revenue from each tolled crossing in the UK was in 2013;
	(2)  what the (a) gross and (b) net revenue from the Severn Bridge and the Second Severn Crossing was in 2013.

Robert Goodwill: The Department for Transport only holds financial information on tolled roads and crossings on the Strategic Road Network (SRN). Tolled crossings and road charges outside the SRN, such as the Mersey tunnel, London congestion charge, Humber and Tamar bridges are a matter for local authorities.
	The M6 Toll is a commercial operation, wholly owned and operated by a private company, Midland Expressway Limited with accounts publically available.
	The Dartford crossing is classified as a congestion charge and not a tolled crossing. In the year ending 31 March 2013 it had gross and net revenue of £80.3 million as VAT is not payable on a road user charge. Audited accounts for year ending 31 March 2014 are not currently available.
	The Severn River Crossings had gross revenue of £97.5 million and net revenue of £81.2 million in year ending 31 December 2012. Audited accounts for year ending 31 December 2013 are not currently available.

WALES

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work programme; and if he will make a statement.

David Jones: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Young People

Owen Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the number of young adults in Wales living with their parents.

David Jones: On 21 January 2014, the Office for National Statistics published their "Young Adults Living With Parents, 2013" study. The study reported that, as a three-year average, 152,000 young adults aged 20-34 in Wales were living with a parent or parents in 2011-13.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Basic Skills: Barrow in Furness

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on the provision of (a) adult literacy services and (b) adult numeracy services in Barrow and Furness constituency in each of the last three years.

Matthew Hancock: The amount spent on the provision of adult literacy and numeracy services (English and maths basic skills training from the Adult Skills Budget) for the past three academic years in Barrow and Furness is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 £ million 
			  Academic year: 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Literacy 0.27 0.26 0.29 
			 Numeracy 0.32 0.32 0.37 
			 Notes: 1. Figures do not include English for Speakers of Other Languages and include English training as part of an Apprenticeship. 2. These data do not include English training undertaken as part of the Employer Ownership Pilot. 3. The spend is estimated based on data from the Individualised Learner Record (ILR).

Boeing

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make a statement on the implication of the UK aerospace industry of the $8.7 billion subsidy package awarded to Boeing by Washington State in November 2013.

Michael Fallon: UK aerospace companies operate in a global market and supply to a wide range of manufacturers across the world. It is too early to determine whether there are specific implications of this package for the UK aerospace industry. We are already taking action to ensure the long term competiveness of our aerospace sector and these were set out in the Aerospace Industrial Strategy, published by the Aerospace Growth Partnership in March 2013.
	We will continue to work closely with the European Commission and support robust action through the World Trade Organisation against illegal subsidies.

Boeing

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will raise with the World Trade Organization the $8.7 billion subsidy package awarded to Boeing by Washington state in November 2013.

Michael Fallon: The UK Government works closely with the European Commission, which is responsible for representing EU member states at the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
	The European Commission on behalf of the EU member states has already raised its concern about this package with the WTO.

Business: Research

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will publish an evaluation of the Small Business Research Initiative.

David Willetts: Budget 2013 announced that an evaluation will be carried out alongside the current Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) expansion to ensure Departments are making best use of the scheme and review whether a further expansion is possible. An evaluation is under way, which will provide an interim report in autumn 2014 and a final report early next year.

Business: Research

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the degree to which the Small Business Research Initiative has met its targets.

David Willetts: The Small Business Research Initiative (SBRI) plays an important role in bringing innovative solutions to specific public sector needs by engaging a broad range of companies in competitions to fund the development of new technologies, products and services. Since SBRI relaunched in 2009 under management of the Technology Strategy Board, it has made good progress with 175 competitions being launched across 42 public bodies resulting in the awarding of 1,477 contracts with a cumulative value of over £165 million. The programme has delivered innovative solutions to challenges such as hospital hygiene and battlefield technology.
	In Budget 2013 we announced an expansion of SBRI so that a greater proportion of public procurement is channelled through the programme, substantially expanding SBRI among key Departments so that the value of contracts through this route increases from £40 million in 2012-13 to over £100 million in 2013-14 and over £200 million in 2014-15. An evaluation is under way, which will provide an interim report in autumn 2014 and a final report early next year.

Combined Heat and Power

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the financial effects of the removal of Climate Change Levy Exemption Certificates for combined heat and power stations on industrial sites which use combined heat and power.

Michael Fallon: BIS has not conducted an assessment of the financial impact of withdrawal of climate change levy exemption certificates (LECs) on existing combined heat & power (CHP) capacity. Policy lead for CHP lies with the Department for Energy and Climate Change. Both Departments are monitoring the impacts of LECs withdrawal and will review the 2013-14 data when it becomes available.

Combined Heat and Power

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to reduce industrial energy costs for sites which have invested in combined heat and power for the purposes of reducing emissions and improving their industrial competitiveness; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: Officials in the Department for Business Innovation and Skills are working closely with officials in the Department for Energy and Climate Change on developing a bespoke policy to support new natural gas fired CHP capacity. Additionally, BIS is implementing measures to reduce the impact of policy on the costs of electricity for the most electricity-intensive industries, including for companies who have invested in CHP, with a £380 million compensation scheme running until March 2016 to help offset the indirect cost of the Carbon Price Floor (CPF) and the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), subject to state aid guidelines.

Companies: Registration

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress his Department has made on creating a public register of companies’ beneficial ownership.

Jennifer Willott: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills published the ‘Transparency and Trust’ discussion paper in July 2013. In it, we sought views on a range of questions relating to implementation of the central registry of company beneficial ownership information, which will be publicly accessible. We are carefully considering the responses received to the discussion paper and will publish a formal Government response shortly. It remains our intention to legislate as soon as parliamentary time permits.

Companies: Registration

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when a registry of beneficial ownership will be introduced.

Jennifer Willott: Primary legislation is required to implement the central registry of company beneficial ownership information. It remains our intention to legislate as soon as parliamentary time permits.

Enterprise Capital Funds

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many bids for funds under the Venture Capital Catalyst Fund have been (a) received and (b) approved; and what funds have been allocated under that scheme to date.

Matthew Hancock: The British Business Bank has been approached by 22 venture capital funds seeking investment from the VC Catalyst fund. Two funds have received investment offers to date, Dawn Capital II, a £63 million fund with a £7.8 million commitment from HMG is now operational and the other, which has a £5 million commitment, is subject to legal agreement but due to launch in soon. Further detail on the second fund will be made available on the British Business Bank website once the legal agreements are signed.

Enterprise Capital Funds

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from the European Commission on whether Enterprise Capital Funds have breeched state aid rules.

Matthew Hancock: The European Commission has undertaken a monitoring exercise on the Enterprise Capital Fund (ECF) programme. The programme has operated since 2006 and funds supported by the programme had, at the time of the monitoring case, invested in over 160 high growth companies.
	The Commission raised a concern over the investments made into three companies and has opened an investigation to look at these in more detail. The Commission notified the UK authorities of this investigation by letter on 20 November 2013 and invited us to provide additional information. This information has been supplied and as a result I am hopeful that the matter will be closed positively.
	Since then, the Commission has granted state aid approval for changes to the future ECF programme.

Environment Protection: Taxation

Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the effect of the carbon price floor of industrial competitiveness of UK businesses.

Michael Fallon: The Government published an international comparison of energy and climate change policies impacting energy intensive industries in selected countries in 2012. This demonstrates that climate change and energy policy costs are creating a differential between the UK and other countries. This is why Government is implementing measures to reduce the impact of policy on the costs of electricity for the most electricity-intensive industries.

Further Education: Inspections

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which further education colleges in England has been reviewed by the FE Commissioner; how much time was spent in each college; and whether in each case the recommendations made by the FE Commissioner following his visit were carried out.

Matthew Hancock: To date four General Further Education Colleges in England have been reviewed by the FE Commissioner and his team of FE Advisers; City of Bristol College, City of Liverpool College, Stockport College and South and West Kent (K) College. Two reviews are currently under way: Barnfield College and LeSoCo. The reviews undertaken by the FE Commissioner and the FE Advisers take up to two weeks in each college. The FE Commissioner's assessment informs the Government's decisions on the action to be taken to address the failures. I have accepted all recommendations of the FE Commissioner. I have written to each of the colleges reviewed and they have confirmed that they are now implementing the changes required.

Higher Education: Admissions

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department will make available for students from a disadvantaged background in higher education after 2015-16.

David Willetts: This is a matter for the next spending review.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010.

Jennifer Willott: A search of our records shows that there have been no civil servants who have been made redundant or retired and subsequently been rehired by Department for Business Innovation and Skills. The implementation of the recruitment freeze in 2010 resulted in limited external recruitment and subsequently any recruitment has been subject to a rigorous approvals process.
	Under the rules of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme anyone who rejoins an employer covered by the scheme is required to repay a proportionate part of their compensation payment.

Science: Finance

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the adequacy of his Department's spending on science.

David Willetts: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills reassesses Government expenditure on science and research during each spending review. The most recent published allocations can be found in the booklet ‘The Allocation of Science and Research Funding 2011-12 to 2014-15’ (20 December 2010):
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/allocation-of-science-and-research-funding-2011-12-to-2014-15
	The Department has also announced additional allocations since the 2010 spending review through fiscal events of over £1.5 billion, and has in the 2013 spending review also announced a long-term commitment to provide £1.1 billion of science capital funding, rising with inflation, to 2021.
	Every two years, BIS commissions a report on the ‘International Comparative Performance of the UK Research Base’, which benchmarks UK performance against key competitor countries on inputs- and outputs-related metrics. The last report, published in December, found that while the UK as a whole spent less on R&D as share of GDP than most comparator countries, it produced the highest quality research. Notably, it pointed out that with 0.9% of the world population, 3.2% of R&D expenditure and 4.1% of researchers, the UK accounted for 6.4% of publications, 11.6% of citations and 15.9% of highly-cited publications.

Students: West Midlands

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many (a) home and (b) international students there are at West Midlands universities.

David Willetts: The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes data on student enrolments at UK higher education institutions (HEIs). Statistics on enrolments at West Midlands HEIs in the academic year 2012/13 by domicile are provided in the table.
	Information on enrolments at UK HEIs in the academic year 2013/14 will become available from HESA in January 2015.
	
		
			 Enrolments level of qualification and domicile1, West Midlands higher education institutions, academic year 2012/13 
			  Postgraduate Undergraduate Total 
			 UK 27,765 127,720 155,480 
			 EU (non-UK) 2,805 6,140 8,945 
			 Other overseas 14,725 11,515 26,240 
			 Total 45,295 145,375 190,665 
			 1 Domicile refers to a student's permanent or home address prior to entry to their course. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, so components may not sum to totals. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Student Record.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Care Homes

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what requirements there are under building regulations for fire sprinklers in timber-framed residential and nursing care homes.

Stephen Williams: There are no specific provisions in Building Regulations relating to the use of fire sprinklers in timber framed care homes.
	Guidance on the fire safety aspects of the Building Regulations is given Approved Document B. Fire sprinklers may sometimes be necessary to meet this guidance but this is not affected by the form of construction used.

Council Tax Benefits

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK have received a reduction in their council tax benefit following changes to council tax support in April 2013.

Brandon Lewis: The information requested is not held centrally.

Council Tax Reduction Schemes

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of council tax benefit subsidy reduction in each local authority in 2014-15.

Brandon Lewis: Government provided £3.3 billion to local authorities for localised council tax support in 2013-14 and intends to make available the same amount in 2014-15. There is no separately identifiable amount for this support at a local authority level within retained business rates or Revenue Support Grant.

Councillors: Allowances

John Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what information he holds on the average basic allowance paid to county councillors in England in 2012-13;
	(2)  what information he holds on the average basic allowance paid to district councillors in England in 2012-13.

Brandon Lewis: My Department does not hold this information. Every council is required to publish information yearly about their spending on councillors' allowances, showing allowances paid to each councillor.
	The TaxPayers' Alliance compiled a survey on councillor allowances, including councillor pensions in August 2012, which can be found on their website at:
	http://www.taxpayersalliance.com/allowances.pdf

Electrical Safety

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that electrical installation work undertaken by tradespeople in homes meets minimum safety standards;
	(2)  what evidence his Department is collecting on the effect of changes to Part P of building regulations covering domestic electrical work adopted in April 2013;
	(3)  if he will assess the effect on overall awareness of electrical safety due to changes to Part P of the building regulations covering domestic electrical work made in April 2013.

Stephen Williams: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 27 November 2013, Official Report, column 336W, to the hon. Member for Waveney (Peter Aldous).

Local Government Finance

John Stevenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what information he holds on how much is raised by local authorities in England in 2012-13 from revenue other than council tax.

Brandon Lewis: The Local Authority Revenue Expenditure and Financing Statistical Release included details of the sources of financing of revenue expenditure from all local authorities in England within the Revenue Outturn Summary. The following link shows the figures from the 2012-13 form:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/266268/Revenue_Outturn_Summary__ RS__data_2012-13_by_LA_-_Revised_16-Dec-2013.xls
	Within the service expenditure figures on the Revenue Outturn Summary form, the Service Expenditure Summary form includes detailed gross income and expenditure figures, including local authority income raised from sales, fees and charges. The following link shows the 2012-13 figures:
	www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/261810/Revenue_Outturn__RSX__ data_2012-13_by_LA_-_28-Nov-2013.xls
	Since April 2013, the local retention of business rates gives councils a direct financial stake and incentive to increase revenues by supporting business growth and expansion.
	Under the last Administration, Ministers actively encouraged councils to raise revenue by hiking fees and charges. We disagree—councils should not be hammering families with stealth taxes. Councils should instead be making sensible savings by cutting the waste and inefficiency that is endemic in the public sector.
	There is also scope for councils to generate revenue from using their commercial trading powers, and for them to increase their returns through good management of their municipal investments and asset/property holdings.

Quarrying: Nature Conservation

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to ensure that the deadline to complete works at a quarry and restore it to nature is strictly adhered to without extensions.

Nicholas Boles: Mineral planning authorities should ensure the proper restoration and aftercare of a site through imposition of suitable planning conditions and, where necessary, through planning obligations. Where there is a breach of conditions or the terms of any planning obligations, mineral planning authorities have a wide range of discretionary enforcement powers available to them, but it is for each authority to decide in each case which is the most appropriate course of action, taking account of local circumstances.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  when he intends to answer question number 183496 tabled on 15 January 2014;
	(2)  when he intends to answer question number 183499 tabled on 15 January 2014 for Named Day Answer on 20 January 2014.

Brandon Lewis: Questions 183496 and 183499 were answered on 29 January 2014, Official Report, columns 600-02W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he intends to answer question number 184121 tabled on 20 January 2014 for Named Day Answer on 23 January 2014.

Kris Hopkins: PQ 184121 was answered on 28 January 2014, Official Report, columns 486-87W.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Floods

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assistance the Government is giving to farmers whose land has been flooded.

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA wants to ensure that our farmers have the resilience and ability to meet challenges caused by flooding, allowing them to grow their businesses, create new jobs and compete effectively in the marketplace.
	Where required, particularly on the Somerset Levels, Animal Health and the Veterinary Laboratories Agency have proactively agreed to a derogation of cattle movements without a pre-movement test.
	Advice to farmers on severe weather is available on the gov.uk website. Advice is also available on the websites of the Environment Agency and the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency, which includes advice on safeguarding animal welfare.
	Farmers should also keep up to date on Environment Agency flood warnings, and take practical preparatory steps in case of a flooding.
	The Environment Agency's staff continue to update local farmers and communities on local flood defence repairs. These repairs are being prioritised using a risk-based approach.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Flood Control

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 125W, on flood control, what assessment he has made of the success of the opportunity maps scheme.

Dan Rogerson: We cannot yet gauge the success of the opportunity maps scheme in directing woodland creation to help manage flood risk because it is too early to assess the effectiveness of recent planting.

Food Poverty

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when his Department plans to publish the findings of its review entitled Household Food Security—a Literature review of Food Aid.

George Eustice: DEFRA has commissioned research to review publicly available evidence on the landscape of food aid provision and access in the UK.
	All government-funded research projects are required to go through the necessary review and quality assurance processes prior to publication. Once this process is complete, the conclusions of this work will be made available on the Government's website.

Glass: Lead

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions his Department has had with the Environment Agency on the import of concrete blocks containing partially treated leaded glass;
	(2)  what recent discussions his Department has had with the Environment Agency on trans-frontier shipment approval for the export of leaded glass for treatment.

Dan Rogerson: There have been no discussions between DEFRA and the Environment Agency about this issue. It is for the Environment Agency to decide whether something meets end of waste criteria or constitutes an illegal waste shipment.

Peat Bogs

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the potential effects of carbon emissions from damaged peatlands; and whether his Department has quantified those effects.

Dan Rogerson: The effect of carbon emissions from damaged peatlands has not been quantified. Natural England estimates that in their current state English peatlands are responsible for the emission of around 3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent a year. This equates to less than 1% of annual UK greenhouse gas emissions.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010.

Dan Rogerson: No staff who have been made redundant or retired from core DEFRA since May 2010 have subsequently been re-employed by core DEFRA as permanent members of staff.

River Ribble

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the feasibility of dredging the River Ribble in order to minimise flood risk to homes, businesses and agricultural land.

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency has made an assessment of the costs and benefits of dredging the River Ribble estuary downstream of Preston. This showed that the cost of dredging would be at least £12 million per year. These costs are based on dredging to the same level as the 1970s when the Port of Preston Authority previously undertook dredging in the Ribble estuary. A similar assessment of the costs of dredging upstream of Preston has not been made as flood risk to properties in this area is low, meaning that dredging of the river would be of little value.
	The Environment Agency considers that such dredging does not represent good value for money compared to other flood risk defences. The network of flood defences built by the Environment Agency, its predecessor bodies, and local authorities along the Ribble estuary downstream of Preston cover a 10 mile stretch and offer between one in 100 and one in 200 year standard protection, depending on the location. Dredging of the Ribble estuary may lead to possible undermining of the training walls at Preston Docks, leading to increased maintenance costs for those important flood risk assets.

Secondment

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  if he will list all staff seconded to his Department from private water companies since May 2010; and what the (a) period, (b) terms and (c) duties of those secondments were;
	(2)  if he will list all staff seconded to his Department from a private water company since 31 May 2010; what the level of pay and remuneration of such staff was; and whether they were funded from the public purse or by their private sector employer;
	(3)  whether any staff have been seconded to his Department from Thames Water since 31 May 2010;
	(4)  whether any staff seconded to his Department from private water companies since 31 May 2010 have advised or worked on issues relating to the Thames Tideway Tunnel;
	(5)  whether staff seconded to his Department from a private water company have contributed to submissions to Ministers;
	(6)  whether any staff seconded to his Department from a private water company since 31 May 2010 worked on (a) water reform policy and (b) the Water Bill currently before Parliament.

Dan Rogerson: The following table lists all staff seconded from private water companies to core DEFRA since 31 May 2010 and sets out their period of secondment and duties. In all cases, the terms of employment of the secondees were those of their private sector employer. Due to issues of confidentially, the names of the secondees are not disclosed.
	
		
			 Company seconded from Period of secondment Duties/area of work 
			 Anglian Water 1 October 2012 to 31 March 2013 Seconded under water industry/Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) partnership development training scheme. The purpose of this scheme is to enable the industry to develop scientific skills for public health protection. The people involved are working towards the professional status of Chartered Scientist through the Institute of Water; the coaching/training provided by DWI is a Better Regulation policy initiative. 
			 Anglian Water 1 October 2012 to 31 March 2013 As above 
			 Thames Water 3 December 2012 to 2 December 2013 Seconded to the Water Reform team. The role was focused on work to prepare for implementation of the Water Bill. The role involved work with Government, regulators and companies across the sector to ensure the operational deliverability of the reform proposals and ensure that any practical issues were fed back to DEFRA's policy team. 
			 Severn Trent Water 25 November 2013 to 24 November 2014 As above 
		
	
	All four people were paid and funded by their private sector employer. Core DEFRA does not hold any information on their pay and remuneration.
	None of the secondees have advised or worked on issues relating to the Thames Tideway Tunnel or contributed to submissions to Ministers.
	Neither of the secondees from Anglian Water have worked on water reform policy or the Water Bill.
	The secondees from Thames Water and Severn Trent Water have been working in the water reform team alongside the policy team developing the Water Bill. They have had no involvement in or influence over the core policy work or the substantive policy proposals being put to Ministers.

Wind Power

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the potential effect of onshore wind farms on house prices in rural areas;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the potential effect of onshore wind farms on (a) the tourism industry and (b) house prices in rural areas.

Dan Rogerson: DEFRA has done some analysis into the effects of energy infrastructure, including wind farms, on the environment and rural economy. This included the potential effects on tourism and house prices, among other impacts. This work is incomplete.

Woodland Grant Scheme

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many grants were made under the English Woodland Grant Scheme;
	(2)  for what reason the English Woodland Grant Scheme was closed.

Dan Rogerson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 552W.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Arson: Barrow in Furness

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of arson were recorded in Barrow and Furness constituency in each of the last five years.

Norman Baker: The Home Office holds data on crime for community safety partnerships, but not for parliamentary constituencies. The number of arson offences recorded in the combined Barrow-in-Furness and South Lakeland Partnership area in each of the last five years is shown in the following table.
	The Office for National Statistics publishes quarterly statistics on crime. As part of this, a set of open data tables is published, showing crime at police force area and community safety partnership level. These contain the data requested, and can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tables
	
		
			 Arson offences in the combined Barrow-in-Furness and South Lakeland CSPs, last five years to September 
			 Year to September Number of recorded arson offences 
			 2009 91 
			 2010 61 
			 2011 51 
			 2012 58 
			 2013 49

Counter-terrorism

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to provide additional funding to the police and security services to cover the cost of surveillance of individuals previously subject to Terrorism Prevention and Investigative Measures Orders.

James Brokenshire: Additional funding of tens of millions of pounds each year has been made available to the police and security service as part of the TPIMs package. We also increased spending on the security and intelligence agencies and protected counter-terrorism policing budgets in the 2015-16 spending round.
	It is the long-standing policy of successive governments not to provide a further breakdown of the counter-terrorism funding made available to the police and security service.

Human Trafficking

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 6 January 2014, Official Report, column 27W, on human trafficking, if she will place in the Library a copy of (a) the Foundation Training Programme and (b) the Competent Authority Training.

Mark Harper: There are no plans to place copies of these courses in the Library.

Immigration Controls: Aviation

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many private international flights which arrived at the airports of (a) Luton, (b) Stansted, (c) Biggin Hill, (d) Farnborough, (e) Northolt, (f) Humberside, (g) Southampton, (h) Cardiff, (i) Bristol, (j) Norwich, (k) Cambridge, (l) Blackpool, (m) Durham Tees Valley, (n) Exeter, (o) Bournemouth, (p) Robin Hood, Doncaster, (q) Lydd, (r) Newcastle, (s) East Midlands and (t) Manston in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13 were (A) checked and (B) not checked by immigration officials.

Mark Harper: To ensure the integrity and security of the UK border Her Majesty's Government cannot comment on port specific statistics.
	Flights are required to give notification of arrival, and Border Force risk assess 100% of these.

Kings Science Academy

David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons and under what process information relating to possible fraud at the Kings Science Academy in Bradford was classified as an information report rather than a crime report.

James Brokenshire: An administrative error by the Action Fraud adviser at the time the call was taken led to the report being categorised as an information report, rather than a crime report. This matter has been raised with the adviser and additional training delivered. In addition wider awareness work has been delivered across the service. Action Fraud advisers are trained to report fraud according to the Home Office Counting Rules for Fraud and Forgery.

Offences Against Children

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the value and ethics of the police practice of making unsolicited approaches to former residents from institutions under investigation of child sex abuses;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the potential benefits and disbenefits of police trawling for evidence in child sex abuse cases;
	(3)  what guidelines her Department issues governing the conduct of police investigations and subsequent prosecution proceedings in cases of suspected child abuse.

Norman Baker: It is important that the police conduct a thorough investigation where allegations of child sexual abuse are reported. The investigations into child sexual abuse by the police are an operational matter for the relevant Chief Officer. They are supported in operational matters through the provision of Authorised Professional Practice from the College of Policing who will shortly be providing updated advice in respect of investigating child abuse cases. This will cover all aspects of the police investigation including the need for the police to develop an identification strategy to identify victims and/or witnesses to avoid any suggestion of 'trawling'. It will also provide advice on arrest, charging and prosecution as well as advice on cases where an investigation identifies a false allegation and, where appropriate, the need for the police to consider supporting a prosecution for attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Offences Against Children

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what safeguards are in place to protect people working with children from false allegations of child abuse;
	(2)  what safeguards are in place to ensure that the offer of compensation does not act as an inducement for giving false or exaggerated evidence during investigations of child sex abuse.

Norman Baker: It is important that a thorough investigation should be completed by the police in all cases where concern for a child is reported whether the possibility of compensation is a factor in an individual case or not.
	It is not always obvious, when a complaint is made and then investigated by the police, that the allegation in question may be false. Where an investigation identifies a false allegation, it may be appropriate for the police to support a prosecution for attempting to pervert the course of justice. It is essential that in all cases that all steps are taken to test the validity of statements, corroborate accounts and establish an accurate picture.

Offences Against Children

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her policy in on granting anonymity to people working with children who are accused of child abuse.

Norman Baker: In May 2013, the College of Policing published guidance for the police on relationships with the media. There is nothing to prevent police forces from naming an arrested person where there is a policing purpose for doing so.
	However, police forces must balance an individual’s right to respect for a private and family life, the rights of publishers to freedom of expression and the rights of defendants to a fair trial.
	A copy of the guidance can be found at:
	http://www.acpo.police.uk/documents/reports/2013/201305-cop-media-rels.pdf

Offences Against Children

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps she has taken to strengthen partnerships between the police and the Crown Prosecution Service for the conduct and direction of child abuse investigations.

Norman Baker: The National Group on Sexual Violence Against Children and Vulnerable People is a panel of experts brought together by the Home Office to co-ordinate and implement the learning from recent inquiries into historical sexual abuse, current sexual exploitation cases and issues around sexual violence more widely. Policing and Crown Prosecution Service colleagues work closely together to drive progress within the dedicated Criminal Justice System and Policing work areas within the National Group's work.
	On 24 July 2013, the Coalition Government published a progress report and action plan on the work of the National Group on Sexual Violence Against Children and Vulnerable People at a stakeholder event at the Home Office. It contained clear activity already delivered by Government and an action plan to take forward activity identified by the Group.
	The Action Plan is already having an impact. The CPS has launched new guidance for police in relation to child abuse and exploitation. The guidance aims to move the focus of investigations away from testing the credibility of victims onto the credibility of the allegation and ensuring victims are listened to by the police. In addition, a joint National Policing Lead/CPS review panel is now in place. This national panel will re-examine historic cases of sexual abuse where a decision had been taken that no further action would be taken and identify whether any issues require further exploration and investigation.

Overseas Students

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many overseas students were reported by their colleges as not attending courses in the last year; and how many such students were (a) investigated and (b) deported.

Mark Harper: Figures on the number of notifications received are provided to the Home Affairs Select Committee on a quarterly basis. For the period 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2013 we had received 86,435 notifications. This includes all notifications not just those for non attendance. Notifications are received for a variety of reasons including; visa refused, change of course, change of address, change of course dates. All notifications are investigated but not all result in curtailment or removal action being taken.
	We are unable to report on the number of cases in which removal action has been taken subsequent to a notification. There is not a direct link between a notification and removal as not all cases will result in curtailment of leave, and in those that do the majority of students will have the opportunity to find alternative courses of study. However where removal action is appropriate it is actively pursued in all cases.

Passports

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many complaints the Passport Office received about the performance of (a) Elucidate Contractor Services and (b) other private sector passport intermediary companies in (i) 2011-12, (ii) 2012-13 and (iii) 2013-14 to date.

Mark Harper: The website www.gov.uk is the only provider of the British passport and passport applicants should use the official Government website.
	Information is not collated to the level of detail required to answer part (a).
	Information relating to part (b) is included in the following table:
	
		
			 Financial year Number of written customer complaints 
			 2011-12 35 
			 2012-13 113 
			 2013-14 — 
			 2014 (up to l January 2014) 590 
		
	
	While there is no one clear explanation as to the increase in the number of written complaints about unofficial third party passport websites, recent media coverage and rulings by the Advertising Standards Authority contribute to customer awareness of this issue.
	The Government Digital Service are leading a cross-Government exercise with organisations such as the OFT, the Advertising Standards Authority, search engine providers and various trading standards bodies to curtail the activity of websites that advertise their services in misleading ways.
	Her Majesty's Passport Office is working with the Government Digital Service to gather more information and provide greater clarity on the scale of the problem, where customers believe they have been misled into using a third party website to access Government services.

Passports

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the introduction of gender non-specific passports; and what discussions she has had with international counterparts on this matter.

Mark Harper: Her Majesty's Passport Office (HMPO) undertook an internal review into the use of gender markers in the British passport. I am today placing a copy of that review in the Library of both Houses.
	The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) governs standards regarding passports and currently prescribes a gender marking in passports.
	The United Kingdom has no plans to depart from that standard. The ICAO Technical Advisory Group has agreed to keep gender markings in passports under review by obtaining regular updates from member states.

Police National Computer

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many warnings were listed on the Police National Computer in 2013, by offence type; and for which offences such warnings were listed.

Damian Green: Police warnings are only recorded on the Police National Computer (PNC) for recordable offences. In 2013, warnings were added to 5,161 PNC person records, covering a total of 6,527 offences in total. It is not possible to readily break down the PNC figures by offence or offence type. However, a breakdown of the total number of warnings, reprimands and cautions issued is published in the criminal justice statistics quarterly bulletin.

Police: Body Searches

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all strip searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 which led to the individual being charged;
	(2)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all strip searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 which led to arrest;
	(3)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all strip searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 which led to conviction;
	(4)  what proportion of strip searches conducted by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 were by people of each recorded ethnic group.

Damian Green: This information is not held centrally.

Police: Complaints

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of IPCC investigations were categorised as conduct matters with special requirements in each year since 2005.

Damian Green: This information is not held centrally. The Independent Police Complaints Commission will write to the hon. Member and I will place a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.

Police: Ethnic Groups

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what proportion of police community support officers in the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic;
	(2)  what proportion of Metropolitan Police officers were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(3)  what proportion of the workforce of the Metropolitan Police were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(4)  what proportion of appointments to all Metropolitan Police jobs were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(5)  what proportion of applicants to all Metropolitan Police jobs were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(6)  what proportion of officers of Borough Commander rank or higher in the Metropolitan Police were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(7)  what proportion of Police and Community Support Officer applicants to the Metropolitan Police were Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Damian Green: Data are provided within the following tables.
	The Home Office does not centrally hold figures on applications for police community support officers.
	The Home Office does not centrally hold verified figures on the proportion of applications for Metropolitan police jobs that were received from Black, Asian or minority ethnic individuals.
	
		
			 Percentage of Metropolitan police work force, by type, within each minority ethnic grouping, 2010 to 2013 
			  Asian or Asian British Black or Black British Chinese or other ethnic group Mixed Total minority ethnic 
			 2010      
			 All police officers 3.4 2.6 1.5 1.9 9.4 
			 Police officers—chief superintendents or above 4.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.1 
			 Police community support officers 10.6 10.1 4.2 4.0 28.9 
			 Police staff 7.7 11.5 2.4 1.6 23.2 
			 Designated officers (S.38, S.39) 6.5 23.0 1.2 2.5 33.1 
			 Traffic wardens 4.3 13.2 3.0 2.0 22.5 
			 Special constables 15.7 7.6 4.7 3.1 31.0 
			 Total police work force 5.8 5.9 2.1 2.1 15.9 
			       
		
	
	
		
			 2011      
			 All police officers 3.5 2.7 1.5 1.9 9.6 
			 Police officers—chief superintendents or above 2.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.6 
			 Police community support officers 10.9 10.7 4.3 4.0 29.9 
			 Police staff 7.7 11.0 2.5 1.6 22.9 
			 Designated officers (S.38, S.39) 7.5 19.3 1.6 3.6 32.0 
			 Traffic wardens 5.2 14.6 2.4 2.7 24.9 
			 Special constables 14.2 6.4 4.4 4.0 29.0 
			 Total police work force 6.0 5.8 2.2 2.2 16.3 
			       
			 2012      
			 All police officers 3.7 2.7 1.6 2.1 10.1 
			 Police officers—chief superintendents or above 4.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.4 
			 Police community support officers 12.8 13.3 4.6 3.8 34.5 
			 Police staff 7.8 10.9 2.5 1.7 22.9 
			 Designated officers (S.38, S.39) 8.4 17.5 1.7 2.4 30.0 
			 Traffic wardens 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Special constables 13.6 5.5 4.4 4.4 27.9 
			 Total police work force 6.2 5.6 2.3 2.3 16.5 
			       
			 2013      
			 All police officers 3.9 2.8 1.6 2.2 10.5 
			 Police officers—chief superintendents or above 3.9 1.9 0.0 1.0 6.8 
			 Police community support officers 12.3 11.6 4.8 3.6 32.3 
			 Police staff 8.1 11.2 2.6 1.8 23.6 
			 Designated officers (S.38, S.39) 8.5 13.9 2.4 3.8 28.5 
			 Traffic wardens 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Special constables 13.1 5.3 4.7 4.7 27.7 
			 Total police work force 6.3 5.7 2.4 2.5 16.8 
			 Notes: 1. Minority ethnic breakdowns for all police work force personnel, apart from “all police officers” have not been verified by police forces and should be treated as provisional. 2. Figures are as at 31 March for each year. Source: Home Office using data received from police forces via the Annual Data Requirement. 
		
	
	
		
			 Percentage of joiners to the Metropolitan police who are minority ethnic, by police work force type, 2010 to 2013 
			  Police officers Police staff Police community support officers Designated officers Traffic wardens Special constables Total police work force 
			 2010 15.4 15.5 16.8 28.3 0.0 28.5 19.0 
			 2011 16.0 20.8 0.0 15.0 0.0 26.6 24.3 
			 2012 16.2 18.3 0.0 18.0 0.0 25.0 21.0 
			 2013 19.8 22.4 18.1 23.4 0.0 27.0 24.0 
			 Notes: 1. Figures have not been verified by police forces and should be treated as provisional. 2. Figures are as at 31 March for each year. Source: Home Office using data received from police forces via the Annual Data Requirement.

Police: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what proportion of Metropolitan Police staff lived in Greater London in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(2)  what proportion of Metropolitan Police staff live in Greater London.

Damian Green: The Home Office does not hold this information centrally.

Police: Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Metropolitan Police Service has ever trialled or used any unmanned aerial surveillance system. [R]

Damian Green: Use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) by the Metropolitan Police Service is an operational matter for the Mayor’s Office for Police and Crime and the Commissioner. Any use of UAVs would, however, need to comply with existing Civil Aviation Authority regulations.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of her Department's overall procurement spend for each of the last three financial years was spent (a) in joint procurement exercises with other Departments and (b) shared between different organisations within the same Department group.

James Brokenshire: The proportion of the Home Department's overall procurement spend for joint procurement exercises with other Departments and shared between different organisations within the same Department group for each of the last three financial years is not collated. To obtain this information would incur disproportionate costs.

Procurement

Chris Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for each of the last three financial years how much and what proportion of her Department's procurement was conducted using e-procurement tools; and what the value of such contracts was.

James Brokenshire: All of the Home Department’s procurement processes have been conducted using e-procurement tools (below restricted classification) for each of the last three financial years.
	Information on the value of such contracts is unavailable as this is not recorded.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from her Department have subsequently been re-employed by her Department since May 2010.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has re-employed 23 staff who retired from the Department since May 2010. The majority are part of the frontline seasonal work force. The Department has not re-employed any staff made compulsorily redundant during this period.

Schengen Agreement

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department at how many meetings to discuss Schengen measures UK officials have been present since 2010.

James Brokenshire: Schengen issues arise across the whole range of EU Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) business. In particular the JHA Council receives a biannual report on the functioning of the Schengen area, as agreed at the March 2012 European Council.
	The UK is routinely represented at such meetings in order to represent UK interests.

Special Constables: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many special constables in the Metropolitan police there were in each London borough in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Damian Green: Figures for 2010 and 2011 are provided in the following table. Figures for 2012 and 2013 are unavailable.
	Figures at basic command unit (London borough) level ceased to be collected from 2011-12 following Lord Wasserman's recommendation that the administrative burden on police forces be reduced.
	
		
			 Number of special constables (headcount) in the Metropolitan police, by London borough, 2010 and 2011 
			  2010 2011 
			 Barking and Dagenham 58 111 
			 Barnet 129 176 
			 Bexley 90 114 
			 Brent 50 108 
			 Bromley 85 129 
			 Camden 167 305 
			 Central Services 258 307 
			 City of Westminster 367 506 
			 Croydon 76 173 
			 Ealing 117 160 
			 Enfield 109 154 
			 Greenwich 73 170 
			 Hackney 45 101 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 79 149 
			 Haringey 68 90 
			 Harrow 78 138 
			 Havering 105 158 
			 Heathrow 12 11 
			 Hillingdon 70 109 
			 Hounslow 44 118 
			 Islington 82 132 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 155 208 
			 Kingston upon Thames 97 125 
			 Lambeth 85 96 
			 Lewisham 67 114 
			 Merton 59 84 
			 Newham 89 143 
			 Redbridge 104 141 
			 Richmond upon Thames 63 104 
			 Southwark 68 105 
			 Sutton 41 106 
			 Tower Hamlets 75 119 
			 Waltham Forest 49 77 
			 Wandsworth 63 92 
			 Note: Figures have not been verified by police forces and should be treated as provisional. Source: Home Office using data received from police forces via the Annual Data Requirement.

Stop and Search: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  if she will provide a breakdown by gender of all stop and searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(2)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all stop and searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(3)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all stop and searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 which led to an arrest;
	(4)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all stop and searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 which led to a conviction;
	(5)  if she will provide a breakdown by ethnicity of all stop and searches by the Metropolitan Police in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 which led to the individual being charged;
	(6)  what proportion of stop and searches conducted in Greater London led to a conviction in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(7)  what proportion of stop and searches conducted in Greater London led to a charge in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(8)  To what proportion of stop and searches conducted in Greater London led to an arrest in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013;
	(9)  what proportion of stop and searches conducted in Greater London were carried out on Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Damian Green: Data on the main stop and search powers used by police in England and Wales are published by the Home Office on an annual basis in the National Statistics series 'Police Powers and Procedures'. Latest published data cover the period up to the financial year 2011-12 and are available online via:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-powers-and-procedures-in-england-and-wales-201112
	Data for 2012-13 are scheduled for publication in the spring of 2014.
	Available data relate to the number of persons stopped and searched under section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984, section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 2004 and section 44/47A of the Terrorism Act 2000.
	Data are provided on the number of persons stopped and searched and resultant arrests by the Metropolitan Police Service, broken down by self defined ethnicity (Table 1), and proportions of searches conducted on minority ethnic persons by the Metropolitan Police Service and City of London Police force areas combined and the proportion resulting in an arrest (Table 2).
	Data on charges and convictions resulting from stops and searches, and breakdowns by gender cannot be provided as they are not held centrally by the Home Office.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of persons stopped and searched1, 2 and resultant arrests by self-defined ethnicity, Metropolitan Police Service 2010-11 and 2011-12 
			 Number 
			  Metropolitan Police Service 
			  2010-11 2011-12 
			 Self-defined ethnicity Number of searches Number of resultant arrests Number of searches Number of resultant arrests 
			 White 246,903 19,115 216,349 18,728 
		
	
	
		
			 Black of Black British 180,872 13,993 149,749 13,201 
			 Asian or Asian British 95,901 5,362 81,142 5,344 
			 Mixed 22,269 2,072 21,182 2,151 
			 Chinese or Other 14,599 1,386 12,280 1,275 
			 Not stated 28,007 1,858 26,978 2,049 
			 Total 588,551 43,786 507,680 42,748 
			 1 Excludes searches of unattended vehicles. 2 Includes stops and searches under the following powers: Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) 1984, section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 2004 and section 44/47A of the Terrorism Act 2000. 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Selected figures relating to stop searches1, 2 in Greater London4, 2010-11 and 2011-12 
			 Proportion (percentage) 
			  Greater London4 
			 Measure 2010-11 2011-12 
			 Proportion of searches carried out on people who self-defined their ethnicity as Black, Asian, Mixed, Chinese or Other 53 52 
			 Proportion searched resulting to arrests3 7 8 
			 1 Excludes searches of unattended vehicles. 2 Includes stops and searches under the following powers: Section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act (PACE) and other legislation, section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 2004 and section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000. 3 Includes the Metropolitan Police Service and City of London Police force areas. 4 Excludes persons who did not state their ethnicity at the time of search.

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will place in the Library all assessments of new policy and legislation from her Department since January 2013 which give consideration to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office is committed to considering the impact of all new policies and legislation, including where they impact specifically on children. The Home Office consults with a range of expert groups, including the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and Barnardo's, to ensure the best interests of a child are represented within our work.
	The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill, currently before Parliament, was published in draft in December 2012.The European Human Rights Convention Memorandum accompanied the publication of the draft Bill and was updated following introduction of the Bill into Parliament. The Memorandum assessed the proposed new orders to be used for tackling antisocial behaviour in England and Wales for compliance with both the European Human Rights Convention and United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child requirements.
	More widely, the coalition Government is due to report to the UN Committee responsible for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child shortly. The Department for Education is co-ordinating the response with contributions from other Government Departments, including the work that the Home Office has undertaken. Once the Government has submitted its response to the UN Committee a copy of the response will be placed in the House Library.

Vetting

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) standard and (b) enhanced disclosure Criminal Record Bureau checks were requested in 2013.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 30 January 2014
	: The following table sets out the number of applications to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for standard and enhanced disclosure checks for the full calendar year 2013:
	
		
			  Number 
			 Standard disclosure 236,954 
			 Enhanced disclosure 3,748,565 
			 Total 3,985,519

TREASURY

Bitcoin

Karl McCartney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on levying VAT on the trade of the Bitcoin digital currency.

David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs have held constructive meetings with stakeholders about the VAT treatment of trades of Bitcoin digital currency. This is a new and complex issue and the appropriate VAT treatment is currently being considered. HMRC will publish guidance shortly.

Business: North East

Pat Glass: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many new loans have been made to small businesses in north east England through the Funding for Lending scheme; and which participating building society or bank provided each such loan.

Sajid Javid: The Bank of England publishes net lending data for the UK for each participating bank under the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS) on a quarterly basis. Decisions about whether to lend to specific businesses in specific locations remain commercial decisions for banks and building societies.
	In November 2013, the Government announced that the scheme extension will be re-focused on business lending, SMEs in particular. Recent evidence shows that credit conditions have improved significantly for businesses, including small businesses.

Capital Gains Tax

John Stevenson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what revenue accrued to the Exchequer in 2013 from capital gains tax.

David Gauke: The information requested is not available. Information on revenue accrued to the Exchequer for the latest available year, 2011-12, is published at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/capital-gains-tax/table14-1.pdf

Civil Servants: Pay

Michael McCann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effect the Government's policies have had on the take-home pay of officials across the civil service compared to May 2010.

Danny Alexander: Civil service pay policy is set annually by the Government, but responsibility for setting pay for employing departments, and arm's length bodies is the responsibility of the relevant Secretary of State. The pay and reward for individual employees will vary depending on criteria set by the Department, including location and performance.
	Moreover, the effect of government policies on civil servants' take- home pay will have varied depending on the circumstances of individual employees. These will have affected their liability for tax and national insurance and their pension contributions.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Nicky Morgan: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), gave on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Government Departments: Property

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the value for money of applying for a change of use application on Government-owned properties before selling such properties.

Francis Maude: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
	The Government property unit or the appropriate owning Department makes an assessment of value achievable from applying for a change of use on a case-by-case basis.

Government Securities

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on the issuance of Government bonds with a fixed maturity where the bondholder receives no capital on maturity but in return receives a higher coupon.

Sajid Javid: The previous Government consulted on issuing annuity-type gilts in 2004-05. Little support was expressed for their introduction.
	This Government has no current plans to issue gilts in this format. However, it keeps an open mind on the introduction of new debt instruments.

Income Tax

Graeme Morrice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of changes in the revenue accrued to the Exchequer (a) to date, (b) by 31 March 2014 and (c) by 31 March 2015 as a result of changes to the top rate of income tax from 50 pence to 45 pence in the pound.

David Gauke: The forecast Exchequer revenue effect of the change in the top rate of income tax from 50p to 45p is as follows:
	
		
			  Exchequer effect (£ million) 
			 2013-14 -60 
			 2014-15 -110 
			 2015-16 -110 
			 2016-17 -120 
			 2017-18 -140 
		
	
	The revenue effects detailed above are set out in the 2013 Budget document, available at;
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/221885/budget2013_complete.pdf
	The HMRC report "The Exchequer effect of the 50% additional rate of income tax" details the rationale for the rate change. The report is published and available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2012/excheq-income-tax-2042.pdf
	The Institute of Fiscal Studies recently endorsed this as the best available evidence.
	This was recently endorsed by the independent IFS.

Income Tax: Newport

Jessica Morden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) higher rate taxpayers and (b) individuals who earn over £1 million there were in Newport East constituency in the last year for which figures are available.

David Gauke: Reliable estimates for taxpayer marginal rate bands are not available at the parliamentary constituency level due to greater uncertainties for smaller geographical areas.
	The total tax for the number of individuals in Newport East constituency can be found in HMRC's National Statistics table 3.15:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/income-by-year/table3-15.pdf
	Estimated numbers of taxpayers in Newport East constituency with total income over £1 million are not available due to insufficient sample sizes.

Income Tax: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) higher rate taxpayers and (b) individuals who earn over £1 million there are in Wales in the last year for which figures are available.

David Gauke: Estimated numbers of higher rate taxpayers in Wales are published on the HMRC National Statistics table 2.2 which is available from the following internet address:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/tax-statistics/table2-2.pdf

Income Tax: Wales

Owen Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect that the reduction in the additional rate of income tax has had on taxpayers in Wales.

Danny Alexander: An estimate of the impact of reducing the additional rate of income tax to 45% for Wales alone is not available. This is because the costing includes a significant behavioural response associated with changes in personal tax rates which is only estimated for the UK as a whole.
	For more details see the HMRC report “The Exchequer effect of the 50% additional rate of income tax", available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/budget2012/excheq-income-tax-2042.pdf

Money Laundering: Trusts

Naomi Long: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department is taking to tackle the abuse of trusts for money laundering.

Sajid Javid: The UK is committed to implementing measures to prevent potential misuse of trusts for illicit purposes. We support mandatory requirements on trustees to hold beneficial ownership information on their trusts and together with the new automatic exchange of tax information agreements there will be more transparency and information exchange on trusts than ever before.

Pay

Michael McCann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what effect changes in pensions contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at senior civil service grades in his Department compared to May 2010;
	(2)  what effect changes in pensions contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at HEO and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010;
	(3)  what effect the change in pension contributions has had on the take-home pay of officials at Grade 7 and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010;
	(4)  what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at AO, LO2 and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010;
	(5)  what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at AA and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010;
	(6)  what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at EO, LO1 and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010;
	(7)  what effect changes in pension contributions have had on the take-home pay of officials at SEO and equivalent grades in his Department compared to May 2010.

Nicky Morgan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given today by the Minister for Civil Society, my hon. Friend the Member for Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (Mr Hurd).

PAYE

Alan Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many individuals subject to the additional rate of income tax pay tax through PAYE.

David Gauke: As published by HMRC, in the income tax year 2013-14 there are an estimated 287,000 taxpayers liable at the additional rate of tax. 246,000 of them have income which is taxed under the PAYE system.
	These estimates are based on the 2010-11 Survey of Personal Incomes, projected to 2013-14 using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility's March 2013 economic and fiscal outlook.

Revenue and Customs

Andrew Percy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average response time was for a letter sent to HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) customer service in each of the last 12 months; what the longest such response time was; and how many complaints about letter response times have been received by HMRC in that period.

David Gauke: HMRC periodically publishes its performance statistics, including post handling at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/business-plan-indicators
	HMRC does not hold the data for how many complaints were received in response to the delays in post handling and could supply these data only at disproportionate cost.
	HMRC also does not hold an average for the department in dealing with correspondence.

Social Security

Stephen Timms: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the annual savings to the Exchequer as a result of (a) withdrawing housing benefit entitlement for young people aged under 25 and (b) evicting households with annual incomes of £60,000 from council tenancies.

Danny Alexander: The latest housing benefit data can be found at:
	https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk
	Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:
	https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm
	The Government recently consulted on proposals to charge higher rents to social tenant households on high incomes. A summary of responses, including updated estimate of the number of social tenant households on high incomes, can be found here
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225313/High_Income_Social_Tenants_-_Pay_to_stay.pdf

Stamp Duties

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total amount of stamp duty accruing from leasehold property transactions has been in each of the last 10 years.

David Gauke: Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) receipts from new leases can be found in table 1.1 of the HMRC publication 'UK Stamp Tax Statistics 2012-13', available here:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/statistics/stamp-duty.htm
	Transfers of leaseholds are included in the 'Land and property other than new leases' column. This information is not readily available from HMRC's systems.

Tax Allowances

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for each of the last six years, (a) how many double tax treaty claims for relief from UK withholding tax on interest were granted, (b) what the total value was of those claims, (c) how many claims were refused by HM Revenue and Customs on the basis that the non-resident claimant was not beneficially entitled to the interest in respect of the relief that was claimed and (d) the total value of those claims.

David Gauke: Where payments of interest are made by UK residents to overseas lenders, the payers are required by law to deduct withholding tax from the payments at the basic rate of income tax. This general rule is subject to a number of exceptions and to. the possible application of a Double Taxation Treaty which provides full or partial relief from withholding tax.
	The information requested is not available centrally, and could be researched only at disproportionate cost.

Tax Avoidance

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of how many taxpayers will be affected by the measures on accelerated payments in follower cases announced in the Autumn Statement in (a) 2014-15, (b) 2015-16, (c) 2016-17, (d) 2017-18 and (e) 2018-19.

David Gauke: It is estimated that around 4,000 taxpayers that have used avoidance schemes sufficiently similar to ones that the Tribunal has determined as being ineffective will be issued with accelerated payment notices across 2014-15 and 2015-16. Estimates for future years are not available.
	The vast majority of people in this country pay the right tax at the right time. The Government has made clear that all tax avoidance is unacceptable, and has been relentless in taking action against it to protect the Exchequer, and to ensure fairness for the vast majority who don't try to avoid.

Taxation: Wales

Owen Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Office for Budget Responsibility about publication of a Welsh taxes forecast.

Danny Alexander: As the Government announced in its response to the Silk Commission's Part I report, we will be formally asking the Office for Budget Responsibility to publish forecasts of Welsh taxes.

Taxation: Wales

Owen Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has asked his officials, HM Revenue and Customs or the Office of Budget Responsibility to undertake a behavioural analysis of the effect of the Government's proposed changes to a future Welsh tax rate on (a) basic, (b) higher and (c) additional rate taxpayers in (i) Wales and (ii) the rest of the UK.

Danny Alexander: The potential behavioural response of particular groups of taxpayers would depend on the policy decisions made by the Welsh Government following the devolution of income tax rate-setting powers.
	Risks of behavioural responses that would be to the detriment of the UK as a whole would be mitigated by the design of the system of income tax devolution included in the draft Wales Bill.

Tobacco: Packaging

Ian Paisley Jnr: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment she has made of the effect on the trade of illicit tobacco of the introduction of standardised packaging in the UK.

Nicky Morgan: Sir Cyril Chantler is carrying out an independent review of the public health impact of standardised packaging. HM Revenue & Customs officials have been interviewed as part of this review.
	The Government will consider the impact on the illicit tobacco trade as part of the wider issues raised by standardised packaging.

VAT: Tourism

Andrew Bingham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received on a VAT reduction for the tourism sector; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the hon. Member for Angus (Mr Weir) on 8 October 2013, Official Report, column 161W.

National Insurance Fund

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the accumulated surplus was in the National Insurance Fund was (a) in May 2010 and (b) on the last date for which data is available.

David Gauke: The appropriate level of the balance of the National Insurance Fund (NIF) is recommended by the Government Actuary. The NIF has no borrowing powers and so historically the Government Actuary has recommended a balance for the NIF of at least 16.6% (two months or one sixth) of projected benefit expenditure to ensure that the NIF maintains a working balance and can deal with short term fluctuations.
	When necessary, additional funding in the form of a Treasury Grant from the Consolidated Fund can be made to the NIF. The maximum Treasury Grant that can be made available in any one tax year is set by primary legislation at 17% of the National Insurance Fund's annual benefit expenditure.
	The balance of the NIF on (a) the 31 May 2013 was £28.48 billion and (b) on 31 December 2013 was £21.39 billion. This reply assumes that ‘accumulated surplus’ refers to the balance in the NIF at the dates stated.

EDUCATION

Curzon Institute

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent contact his Department has had with (a) Curzon Education and (b) the Curzon Institute; what contracts his Department holds with those bodies; and what the value of those contracts is.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education has not had any recent discussions with Curzon Education or the Curzon Institute and does not hold any contracts with these bodies.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will set out his Department’s priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work programme; and if he will make a statement.

Matthew Hancock: I refer the hon. Member to the response given on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Free School Meals

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 25 November 2013, Official Report, column 63W, on school meals, what support his Department will give to primary schools in providing universal free school meals to all children up to the age of seven; and what additional support his Department will give those primary schools without kitchen facilities.

David Laws: In addition to the £1 billion of new revenue funding that we will be providing to schools to support this policy between 2014 and 2016, we will be offering a comprehensive package of implementation support to help schools overcome the practical and logistical challenges involved in providing universal infant free school meals. We will announce further details about this support shortly.
	The Department for Education has also allocated £150 million capital funding in 2014-15 to assist schools in providing universal infant free school meals through investment in kitchen and dining facilities. Details of the capital allocations we are making to individual local authorities were announced on 18 December 2013, as well as the fact that additional capital funding would be made available for academies and free schools through the Academies Capital Maintenance Fund (ACMF).

Further Education: Finance

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the effect of changes in levels of funding for 18-year-olds in full-time education on educational attainment.

Matthew Hancock: With the move to funding per student, we no longer fund on the basis of individual qualifications and it is for schools and colleges to determine the programme that best meets the needs of their students. Many 18-year-olds have already had two years of post-16 education. Even after this change, from 2014/15, full-time 18-year-olds will attract the same or more funding as the average 18-year-old attracted for the core element of the programme they undertook in 2012/13, before the change in the funding formula in 2013/14. As such, we do not expect this to have a significant impact on educational attainment.

GCSE

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of children in England and Wales achieved five or more GCSEs at grade A* to C in any subject in 2013.

David Laws: 81.8% of pupils in England at the end of key stage 4 achieved five or more GCSEs at grade A*-C in the 2012/13 academic year.
	The requested information is published in the “GCSE and equivalent results in England, 2012 to 2013 (revised)”1 statistical first release. The information on the proportion of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs at grade A*-C is available in table 1a in the “National tables: SFR01/2014” document.
	The Department for Education produces statistics on England only. The responsibility for education statistics in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales lies with each devolved Administration.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gcse-and-equivalent-results-in-england-2012-to-2013-revised

GCSE

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of children in England and Wales achieved five or more GCSEs at grade A* to C, of which two were English and mathematics, in 2013.

David Laws: 59.2% of pupils in England at the end of key stage 4 achieved five or more GCSEs at grade A*-C in the 2012/13 academic year.
	The requested information is published in the “GCSE and equivalent results in England, 2012 to 2013 (revised)”1 statistical first release. The information on the proportion of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs at grade A*-C including English and mathematics is available in table 1a in the “National tables: SFR01/2014” document.
	The Department for Education produces statistics on England only. The responsibility for education statistics in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales lies with each devolved Administration.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gcse-and-equivalent-results-in-england-2012-to-2013-revised

GCSE

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of children in England and Wales achieved no GCSEs at grade A* to C in 2013.

David Laws: 5.2% of pupils in England at the end of key stage 4 achieved no GCSEs at grade A*-C in the 2012-13 academic year.
	The requested information is published in the ‘GCSE and equivalent results in England, 2012 to 2013 (revised)’ statistical first release:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gcse-and-equivalent-results-in-england-2012-to-2013-revised
	The information on the percentage of pupils achieving no GCSEs at A*-C is available in table 3a in the ‘National tables: SFR01/2014’ document.
	The Department for Education produces statistics on England only. The responsibility for education statistics in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales lies with each devolved Administration.

Kings Science Academy

David Ward: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for what reasons his Department did not provide further information to Action Fraud when that body reported on 5 September 2013 via email that they did not have enough information to progress the case further on Kings Science Academy.

Edward Timpson: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Bradford West (George Galloway) on 5 December 2013, Official Report, column 829W.

Pre-school Education

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 6 January 2014, Official Report, column 100W, on pre-school education and with reference to his Department's press release on free early years education for disadvantaged two-year-olds issued on 22 January 2014, what the statistical basis is for the statement in that press release by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education and Childcare that 90 per cent of two-year olds were in good or outstanding settings; what the reason is for the time planned to be taken to publish the data gathered in the Early Years and Schools Censuses; and if he will publish all available data on the proportion of disadvantaged two-year olds receiving early years education in settings rated as satisfactory or requiring improvement.

Elizabeth Truss: The statement to which the question refers stated that nearly 90% of providers delivering two-year-old places were good or outstanding. The information was based on local authority reports to the Department for Education implementation support provider, ‘Achieving Two Year Olds’, on the number of settings delivering places for funded two-year-olds in autumn 2013. This provides a strong indication that local authorities understand the importance of using good, and outstanding provision to deliver two-year-old places wherever possible.
	From this summer, the Department will publish statistical data which will include information on two-year-olds benefitting from funded early education by provider type and by Ofsted inspection rating, as it currently does for three- and four-year-olds.
	The Early Years and Schools censuses collect information from individual settings in a particular week in January. The deadline for the return of information to the Department is in April. Data needs to be checked to ensure that it is accurate. It is then analysed and prepared for publication in a statistical first release published in the summer. The statistical first release is published as early as practically possible to ensure that published data meets the requirements of the UK Statistics Authority's Code of Practice.

Primary Education: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many additional primary school places were created in each London borough in each of the last 10 years.

David Laws: The Department collects information from each local authority (LA) on the number of available school places (school capacity) in state-funded primary and secondary schools (except special schools) through an annual survey. We do not collect the actual number of additional school places that have been added during an academic year or the number of places that have been removed.
	The capacity figure that is reported and published shows the number of available school places as at May in the academic year of the survey. The most recent data available relate to the position at May 2013 and can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-capacity-academic-year-2012-to-2013
	The data show that 260,000 additional places have been created nationally in state-funded primary and secondary schools since 2010, which includes just over 59,000 primary school places being added in the London local authorities. The opening of 50 free schools in London has created 30,412 primary and secondary places since 2010.
	We continue to provide capital funding to local authorities to assist in providing additional school places and monitor the situation regularly to ensure there are sufficient places to meet local need. Since 2011-12 we have made available £6.36 billion to fund school places in England, with London LAs receiving a share of £2.24 billion. We are also investing an additional £820 million for schools in England over the remainder of this Parliament through the Targeted Basic Need Programme. The programme will fund the provision of over 70,000 new, high quality school places nationally in the areas that need it most.
	The following table shows the number of school places in state-funded primary schools in the London LAs in each academic year from 2004 onwards:
	
		
			 Number of school places 
			 LA 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 
			 Barking and Dagenham 17,831 17,841 17,607 17,919 18,149 17,751 18,107 19,615 22,100 24,645 
			 Barnet 25,789 25,418 25,418 25,006 25,421 25,421 25,503 26,037 26,486 27,952 
			 Bexley 21,038 20,491 20,280 20,280 19,712 19,377 19,214 19,262 20,173 20,897 
			 Brent 22,964 23,201 22,905 22,905 22,173 22,173 22,062 23,013 24,344 24,830 
			 Bromley 24,218 25,096 25,096 25,096 24,927 24,515 23,926 24,436 24,671 25,192 
			 Camden 11,194 11,189 10,933 10,922 10,947 10,996 11,004 11,034 11,129 11,239 
			 City of London 210 210 210 210 210 210 210 210 210 210 
			 Croydon 30,222 29,725 29,600 29,338 28,523 28,521 28,209 28,753 29,357 31,332 
			 Ealing 25,369 25,134 25,186 25,235 25,238 25,314 25,538 27,015 27,180 28,313 
			 Enfield 26,217 26,755 26,755 26,719 26,550 26,712 26,960 27,945 28,806 31,451 
			 Greenwich 20,638 20,572 20,611 20,617 20,677 21,037 20,631 20,883 22,059 22,539 
			 Hackney 17,577 18,123 17,219 17,267 17,331 17,464 17,648 17,648 18,048 18,678 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 9,606 9,606 9,578 9,367 9,157 9,157 9,157 9,647 9,977 10,590 
			 Haringey 21,203 21,252 21,345 21,148 20,929 20,911 20,884 21,006 21,572 22,181 
			 Harrow 21,182 20,972 20,942 20,421 21,208 21,005 20,877 20,178 18,321 18,678 
			 Havering 20,401 20,396 20,159 20,198 20,259 20,038 19,243 19,464 19,524 19,643 
			 Hillingdon 23,700 23,640 23,576 23,579 23,849 24,212 24,225 24,605 24,870 25,577 
			 Hounslow 18,700 18,592 18,494 18,494 18,494 18,494 18,197 18,473 19,564 20,460 
			 Islington 14,912 14,501 14,261 14,165 13,962 14,049 14,069 13,922 13,948 14,076 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 6,940 6,940 6,940 6,975 6,975 6,898 6,898 6,898 7,339 7,339 
			 Kingston upon Thames 11,169 11,060 11,096 11,047 11,050 10,921 11,112 11,558 12,746 13,641 
			 Lambeth 19,175 19,217 19,217 19,423 19,539 20,020 19,570 20,257 20,791 21,483 
			 Lewisham 22,262 22,025 22,017 22,079 21,754 20,913 21,093 21,015 21,613 23,929 
		
	
	
		
			 Merton 15,266 14,857 14,920 14,787 14,795 14,786 14,846 15,212 15,730 16,422 
			 Newham 29,767 29,948 29,958 29,958 30,034 29,093 29,093 29,184 30,565 31,627 
			 Redbridge 22,208 22,270 22,159 22,159 23,629 23,629 24,069 24,619 25,280 27,392 
			 Richmond upon Thames 13,311 13,311 13,538 13,538 13,538 13,596 13,596 13,929 14,723 15,582 
			 Southwark 24,075 24,075 23,655 23,655 23,340 23,025 22,815 22,920 23,231 24,741 
			 Sutton 14,289 14,126 14.009 13,688 13,653 13,601 13,424 13,450 14,104 14,726 
			 Tower Hamlets 21,308 21,308 21,294 21,351 21,351 21,351 21,582 21,909 22,536 23,987 
			 Waltham Forest 20,374 20,616 20,680 20,730 20,546 20,355 20,046 20,551 21,207 22,337 
			 Wandsworth 17,077 17,072 17,150 16,962 16,882 16,905 16,922 17,271 17,531 18,456 
			 Westminster 9,931 9,931 9,931 9,931 9,931 9,931 11,425 10,678 11,185 11,331 
			 Notes: 1. The capacity is reported as at January prior to 2010 and as at May from 2010 onwards. 2. The capacity shown above is the number of places available in primary and middle-deemed primary state-funded schools. Source: School Capacity Collection

Private Education: Offences Against Children

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether any inspectors working for the Independent Schools Inspectorates (a) have been accused of child abuse and (b) have been in a position of responsibility in schools with a reported history of child abuse allegations in their careers.

Edward Timpson: This is a matter for the inspectorates concerned, but we have been given information by them.
	The Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) has procedures in place for checking the suitability of inspectors on appointment. Any subsequent concern about safeguarding, whether in relation to an individual or a school with which they are associated, is considered carefully and can result in that inspector no longer being deployed. The inspectorate works closely with local safeguarding agencies to ensure appropriate action is taken in all cases. In recent years a number of inspectors have ceased to be deployed for reasons connected with statutory notices being served on schools they are connected with; parental complaints; and underperformance. In addition, one individual team member has been subject to direct allegations and was suspended immediately when ISI was informed.
	Both the School Inspection Service (SIS) and Bridge Schools Inspectorate (BSI) also have extensive procedures for checking suitability, under their agreements with the Secretary of State for Education. They have both reported that they are not aware of any accusations or connections with relevant schools for any of their inspectors. If any allegations were made about an individual they would be suspended, and the Department informed.

Procurement

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his Department's 10 largest contracts let since the financial year 2010-11 are; what savings have been made in such contracts; what the level of overspend or underspend was in each such contract; and what steps his Department has taken to monitor the performance of each supplier of such contract following the contract award.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education's 10 largest contracts (excluding executive agencies) let since the financial year 2010-11, savings and level of overspend and underspend are as detailed in the following table.
	The Department's policy is to assign a contract manager to oversee and monitor performance of the contract, which includes putting in place regular quality assurance meetings and assessment of progress against key performance measures/milestones.
	
		
			 Contract Supplier Value (£) Savings Over/underspend 
			 Teachers' Pension Scheme Capita 89,000,000 Contract awarded following competitive tender which ensured value for money. Fixed price contract—no scope for over or under spend. 
			 Schools Performance and Data Programme Resource Management 25,500,000 Savings expected after implementation (spring 2015). Overall expected annual savings £5 million-£6 million by implementing this contract and associated arrangements/efficiencies delivered by the programme compared with the cost of continuing with existing contracts. None 
		
	
	
		
			 Independent Shared Service Centre 2 Steria 20,000,000 Projected savings: £2.3 million and £3.1 million. None (contract signed November 2013). 
			 Achievement for All Achievement for All 14,000,000 None None 
			 Creative Media Service (CMS) Creative Choice 8,000,000 Savings for core Department: £305,203 to date and average 25%+ when benchmarked against 2009-10 prices. This framework is pan-Government and has saved all clients a total of £3.5 million to date. Nil—each job/call-off is mini-competed with quotes on the CMS procurement portal. 
			 Triple Science Support Programme Myscience.co.Limited 7,000,000 Previous contract was for four years, four months, value £13.2 million. Current contract for two years, six months, value £7.0 million. £22,107 to date 
			 The Mathematics Continuing Professional Development and Support programme Tribal Education Ltd 6,826,729 None None 
			 Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care Kings College London 6,714,573 Market cost comparison exercise undertaken to ensure contract represents value for money. None 
			 The provision of infrastructure as a service(IAAS) Eduserv 6,181,928 None. Payment is based on services consumed and deliverables completed. None 
			 Early Support and Keyworking National Children's Bureau/Council for Disabled Children/Early Support 5,890,000 Contract awarded following competitive tender which ensured value for money. None

Pupils

Mary Macleod: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent assessment he has made of the effect of poor behaviour and absenteeism on pupil attainment.

Elizabeth Truss: The data for 2011/12 academic year shows clear evidence of a link between poor attendance at school and low levels of achievement:
	1. Of pupils who miss more than 50% of school, only 3% manage to achieve five A* to Cs including English and maths.
	2. Of pupils who miss between 10% and 20% of school, only 37% manage to achieve five A* to C GCSEs including English and maths.
	3. Of pupils who miss less than 5% of school, 73% achieve five A* to Cs including English and maths.
	The Department's publication 'Pupil Behaviour in Schools in England'1 established the link between poor behaviour and lower attainment.
	1. The attainment of schools with an outstanding behaviour judgment from Ofsted in 2008/09 was just four GCSE points higher (i.e. around half a grade per pupil) than schools with a Good behaviour judgment.
	2. The difference between a school with an Outstanding behaviour judgment compared with a school with a Satisfactory or Inadequate behaviour judgment was more than nine GCSE points (i.e. more than a full grade per pupil).
	3. Pupils who self-reported in Longitudinal Study of Young People in England as misbehaving in most or all of the classes were associated with significantly lower key stage 4 attainment than their peers. On average, pupils who said they misbehaved in most or all of their classes were estimated to achieve 29 fewer GCSE points (a grade lower in five GCSE subjects) than those who said they do not misbehave.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/184078/DFE-RR218.pdf

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010.

Elizabeth Truss: Since May 2010, no members of staff that have been made redundant or retired from the Department for Education have subsequently been re-employed.

Schools: West Midlands

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to reduce funding gaps between schools (a) in the county of Staffordshire and (b) in the local authority areas of Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall and Birmingham.

David Laws: The Chancellor announced in June that we would consult on how best to introduce a national fair funding formula, which will mean that all areas receive a fair allocation of school funding. We will announce the next steps shortly.

Secondary Education: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many additional secondary school places were created in each London borough in each of the last 10 years.

David Laws: The Department collects information from each local authority (LA) on the number of available school places (school capacity) in state-funded primary and secondary schools (except special schools) through an annual survey. We do not collect the actual number of additional school places that have been added during an academic year or the number of places that have been removed. The capacity figure that is reported and published shows the number of available places as at May in the academic year of the survey. The most recent data available relates to the position at May 2013 and can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-capacity-academic-year-2012-to-2013
	The data shows that 260,000 additional places have been created nationally in state-funded primary and secondary schools since 2010, which includes over 31,000 secondary school places being added in the London local authorities. The opening of 50 free schools in London has created 30,412 primary and secondary places since 2010.
	We continue to provide capital funding to local authorities and monitor the situation to ensure there are sufficient school places. Since 2011-12 we have made available £6.36 billion to fund school places in England, with London LAs receiving a share of £2.24 billion.
	The following table shows the capacity of state-funded secondary schools in the London LAs from 2010 onwards. Prior to 2010, the Department did not collect data on the number of available places in academies.
	
		
			  Number of school places 
			 Local authority 2010 2011 2012 2013 
			 Barking and Dagenham 14,175 14,522 14,448 16,742 
			 Barnet 24,087 25,810 25,179 25,277 
			 Bexley 21,891 22,515 22,420 22,420 
			 Brent 119,786 20,767 20,599 20,755 
			 Bromley 22,681 23,083 24,097 24,097 
			 Camden 10,137 10,440 10,577 11,622 
			 Croydon 22,711 23,060 24,526 24,527 
			 Ealing 17,489 18,749 18,948 19,085 
			 Enfield 23,914 24,585 24,615 24,000 
			 Greenwich 15,792 15,116 15,137 15,004 
			 Hackney 19,184 12,387 12,521 13,466 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 7,613 7,676 9,099 9,210 
			 Haringey 14,068 14,651 13,223 14,214 
			 Harrow 9,306 12,209 13,267 14,978 
			 Havering 17,343 17,924 18,076 18,183 
			 Hillingdon 21,416 22,244 21,657 23,101 
			 Hounslow 17,047 17,149 17,377 18,450 
			 Islington 9,426 9,891 9,736 9,127 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 4,731 4,731 4,623 4,623 
			 Kingston upon Thames 10,431 10,393 10,494 10,495 
			 Lambeth 11,798 11,787 11,005 11,235 
			 Lewisham 15,414 15,596 15,278 15,404 
			 Merton 9,931 10,020 10,209 9,929 
			 Newham 19,633 19,198 19,248 20,988 
			 Redbridge 20,590 21,774 21,414 23,875 
			 Richmond upon Thames 7,922 8,021 8,000 8,150 
		
	
	
		
			 Southwark 15,292 16,443 14,807 14,817 
			 Sutton 16,960 17,131 17,920 17,976 
			 Tower Hamlets 15,410 15,410 15,609 16,318 
			 Waltham Forest 15,639 14,745 15,049 15,494 
			 Wandsworth 13,205 13,225 11,569 12,342 
			 Westminster 9,318 10,325 9,882 10,002 
			 1 Pupil numbers on roll have been used where the capacity of an academy has been unavailable. Notes: 1. The capacity shown above is the number of places available in secondary and middle deemed secondary state funded secondary schools. 2. In 2010 academy capacity is derived from Edubase or academy funding agreement. 3. From 2011 academy capacity is reported from academy funding agreement or from within the EFA. Source: School Capacity Collections

Special Educational Needs

Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers have accessed the National Scholarship Fund for the purpose of undergoing training to become a teacher of specific learning difficulties and dyslexia in the last five years.

David Laws: The National Scholarship Fund provides opportunities for teachers and special educational needs (SEN) support staff to apply for funding to undertake postgraduate qualifications and training in supporting children with SEN and disabilities, including specific impairments such as dyslexia.
	In three rounds of the National Scholarship Fund, 309 scholars accessed funding specifically for training in specific learning difficulties and dyslexia.
	To support the Government's SEN reforms, the Department for Education is funding Nasen to develop a SEN Gateway. This will provide simple online access to a range of information and training materials for schools.
	The Gateway will include access to training materials previously developed by the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) including introductory training for teachers on dyslexia and specific learning difficulties (developed originally as part of the Inclusion and Development Programme) and advanced level online modules on dyslexia, to enhance teachers' specific knowledge, understanding and skills.
	Funds from this and the previous government have been made available for 3,200 teachers to study for advanced qualifications approved by the British Dyslexia Association.

Special Educational Needs

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what mechanisms are in place to support maintained schools which do not have a Special Educational Needs co-ordinator;
	(2)  what measures are in place to ensure that all maintained schools receive the required level of support from a Special Educational Needs Coordinator.

Edward Timpson: All mainstream schools are required to identify a member of staff as Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO). They must have qualified teacher status and have specified qualifications or experience.
	It is the responsibility of a school's governing body to ensure that they have a suitable SENCO. Further guidance on the role is set out in the draft Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. Consultation on the code closed on 9 December 2013 and the Department for Education is currently considering the responses received.

Special Educational Needs

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what plans he has to discuss the draft Special Education Needs Code of Practice with disability charities and other stakeholders before publication of the final version;
	(2)  for what reason the definition of progress in Chapter six of the draft Special Education Needs Code of Practice no longer includes improvements in self help, social and personal skills.

Edward Timpson: The Department for Education recently consulted publicly on a draft Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice. Revisions are being made to the Code of Practice to take account of developments during the passage of the Children and Families Bill and responses to the consultation, which were from a wide range of organisations in the statutory and voluntary and community sectors, including those in the SEN and disability field. We will continue to work with those who must have regard to the Code of Practice and those who support children, young people and families as this is taken forward.

Staff

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many officials worked in each Directorate and group in his Department in April (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

Elizabeth Truss: The number of officials working in each directorate and group in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 is set out in the following table. Because of reorganisation, the table is a representation of the structure of the Department at those points in time. Blank cells indicate that a group has moved into another directorate.
	Between April 2011 and April 2012, 11 arms length bodies were closed and four new executive agencies within the Department were created. These changes have led to a 40% reduction in the Department's workforce since this Government came to office.
	The Department is on target to reduce its administration costs by 50% in real terms by 2015-16.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent 
			  May 2010 April 2011 April 2012 April 2013 
			 Children and Families 461 — — — 
			 Young People 386 — — — 
			 Schools 606 — — — 
			 Children Young People and Families — 430 576 — 
			 Strategy and Performance — — 33 — 
		
	
	
		
			 Children's Services and Departmental Strategy — — — 655 
			 Education Standards (excluding Agencies) — 536 953 508 
			 Infrastructure and Funding .(excluding Agencies) — 514 886 680 
			 Communications 215 — — — 
			 Corporate Services 744 869 — — 
			 Chief Information Officer — — — 201 
			 Finance and Commercial — — 149 258 
			 Internal Audit 30 27 28 — 
			 Human Resources — — — 84 
			 Change Group — — — 11 
			 Legal Advisors 5 4 5 14 
			 Private Office 57 59 69 — 
			 Closed NDPBs 3,071 1,922 0 0 
			 New Agencies 0- 0 1,169 1,200 
			 Total 5,575 4,362 3,868 3,610 
			 Note: The May 2010 numbers for the ALBs are annual averages for financial year 2009-10 taken from annual reports.

Teachers: Offenders

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teachers currently practising in England have criminal convictions, by category of criminal offence.

David Laws: The information requested is not held centrally.
	Employers have a statutory duty to undertake Criminal Records Bureau checks as part of their recruitment process.
	If a practising teacher is convicted of an offence, their employer will be notified under the Notifiable Occupations Scheme.

Teachers: Pay

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he (a) has had and (b) plans to have with the School Teachers' Review Body about extending the terms and conditions for teachers to allow them to buy cars through salary sacrifice schemes.

David Laws: There have been no discussions with the School Teachers' Review Body about this issue.

Young People: Employment Schemes

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his most recent assessment is of the effectiveness of the Youth Contract for 16 to 17 year olds.

Matthew Hancock: In order to assess the effectiveness of the Youth Contract programme for 16 and 17-year-olds in helping young people participate in education and training, the Department for Education has commissioned a consortium led by the Institute for Employment Studies to carry out an independent evaluation of the programme. This research will be published in spring 2014.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Developing Countries: Disability

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department are taking to ensure that people with disabilities are able to benefit equally from UK aid programmes and have a voice in international development.

Lynne Featherstone: UK aid programmes are grounded in a thorough poverty analysis which seeks to identify the specific needs of poor and disadvantaged people. The UK Government invests both in programmes that directly support people with disabilities, and in mainstream programmes that include a specific focus on people with disabilities. The UK also provides support to the Disability Rights Fund and to other organisations such as ADD International which specifically work to empower disabled people and disabled people's organisations. Going forward, seeing disability properly included in the post-2015 international development framework is one of the UK priorities.

Developing Countries: Eyesight

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to tackle trachoma in the developing world.

Lynne Featherstone: DFID is funding the Global Trachoma Mapping Project that will complete the global mapping of trachoma. This project will identify where people are at risk of the disease and where treatment programmes are needed. The project has examined over 1 million people for trachoma since December 2012. DFID is also designing a programme to prevent and treat trachoma in a number of high-burden countries in Africa.
	The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust has made the elimination of avoidable blindness in the Commonwealth a major focus of its work. This will include work on trachoma. DFID is providing up to £50 million in matched funding to support the work of the Trust on avoidable blindness.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will set out her Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if she will make a statement.

Lynne Featherstone: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that was given by the Minister for Europe, the right hon. Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 65W.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the average cost per download was for each campaign in each of the electoral registration campaigns since 2004.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it maintains data for its registration campaigns dating back to the 2005 UK general election.
	The Electoral Commission has completed nine public awareness campaigns since 2005. The cost and response to these campaigns in terms of downloads are set out in the following table.
	In this table, the cost-per-registration download figures are based on media costs; the cost of actually running the advertisements. They do not include the cost of developing and producing the adverts themselves because this would skew the comparisons (some advertising campaigns reused existing material, but others involved spending on producing new material).
	The total campaign expenditure (including producing material and other costs such as research and call centre provision) is shown in the final column.
	What is clear is that the perceived importance of an election does appear to have an effect on the cost per registration, hence the extremely cost-effective response rate to the 2010 general election.
	The budgets for each campaign are also not entirely comparable as elections happen in different areas of the UK and different populations (such as the inclusion of London) can have a particular effect on the media budget. What this does show, however, is that even excluding general elections, over the past nine years, the cost per registration has decreased in a general trend.
	
		
			   £ 
			 Campaign Total registration forms downloaded during the campaign period pre-registration deadline Cost of airtime/advertising space Cost per registration form downloaded during the campaign period pre-registration deadline Total campaign spend including producing material, research and running a call centre 
			 General election 2005 49,000 3,600,000 73.47 14,100,000 
			 England and Wales local elections 2006 34,000 1,300,000 38.24 1,500,000 
			 England and Wales local elections 2007 51,000 1,800,000 35.29 2,400,000 
			 England, Wales and London elections 2008 128,000 3,200,000 25.00 3,900,000 
			 European Parliament 2009 137,000 3,200,000 23.36 4,000,000 
			 General Election 2010 466,000 2,300,000 4.94 2,700,000 
		
	
	
		
			 PVS referendum 2011 (limited registration activity) 131,000 3,100,000 23.66 26,400,000 
			 English, Scottish and Welsh elections 2012 146,000 2,900,000 19.86 34,100,000 
			 English local elections 2013 87,000 900,000 10.34 1,200,000 
			 1 This is from the 2005-06 financial year only. 2 This included a national door drop booklet to all UK households (£2,500,000). 3 This included funds from Scottish Government to fund a separate Scottish local elections campaign (£1.4 million) that involved a door drop booklet to all households in Scotland. Notes: 1. The table does not include the results from the Police and Crime Commissioner elections (November 2012): the emphasis of that campaign was on voter information rather than registration due to the annual canvass taking place so soon before polling day. 2. Registration activity for the PVS referendum was limited to an inclusion of messages in the voter information adverts about the deadline for registering to vote rather than a specific registration drive. 3. Media spend and registration forms numbers have been rounded. 4. The number of registration forms downloaded does not necessarily translate into the number of actual registrations. 
		
	
	The commission also ran a public awareness campaign to support the Northern Ireland autumn canvass in 2013 at a cost of £835,000. The campaign encouraged people to return the canvass form that they received, rather than download one from the commission’s website. 30% of people surveyed in Northern Ireland said they returned the canvass form because of the commission’s public awareness campaign, which met the target set for the campaign based on the nearest equivalent campaign in 2006.
	A similar campaign was conducted to support the 2006 autumn canvass in Northern Ireland at a cost of £628,000. 29% of those surveyed said they returned the canvass form because of the commission’s public awareness campaign.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what information the Electoral Commission holds on the registration rates of attainers in (a) Great Britain and (b) each region of Great Britain.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it does not hold data on the registration rate of attainers by each region of Great Britain.
	However, the Electoral Commission’s study on the completeness and accuracy of the April 2011 registers in Great Britain found that 55% of 17 to 18-year-olds were registered to vote.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

British Nationals Abroad

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 27 January, Official Report, column 426W, on British nationals abroad, who will conduct this review; which organisations will be consulted as part of the review; and whether a public consultation will be part of the review.

Mark Simmonds: The review will begin in February and conclude in the summer. The first stage of the review process will be to set its scope, including the range of stakeholders to be consulted and whether a public consultation will take place.

British Nationals Abroad

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to his answer of 27 January, Official Report, column 426W, on British Nationals abroad, if he will consult the devolved Administrations on the use of police and court services in regard to UK citizens killed or seriously harmed abroad.

Mark Simmonds: A wide range of key external stakeholders will be consulted as part of this review of consular response to cases of murder and manslaughter, including appropriate contacts within the devolved Administrations. Once complete, if the review results in the adoption of new policies in these areas, a copy of the new policies will be placed in the Library of the House.

Nigeria

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to his Nigerian counterpart following the passage of the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act in that country; and with which international counterparts he has discussed the Act's compatibility with (a) the Commonwealth Charter and (b) international human rights laws.

Mark Simmonds: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), made a public statement on 15 January and highlighted our concerns with the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act in Nigeria. the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, my hon. Friend the Member for Kenilworth and Southam (Jeremy Wright), raised these concerns with the Nigerian Foreign Minister on 9 January 2014, as did our High Commissioner in Abuja with the Nigerian Attorney-General the same day. During the Act's passage through the National Assembly we made our concerns about it clear to the Nigerian Government.
	We are clear that the Same Sex Marriage Bill infringes both the human rights of the Nigerian LGBT community and the rights of expression and association, which are guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution and by Nigeria's international treaty obligations. We also consider that the Bill is not compatible with The Commonwealth Charter. We have discussed this with international partners, including the US and the EU both of whom have also issued statements of concern.

Pakistan

Neil Parish: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions the Government has had with the government of Pakistan regarding the constitutional Federal Shariah Court in Pakistan's call for the implementation of the death penalty against those found guilty of breaking blasphemy laws; and if he will make a statement.

Hugh Robertson: It is our long standing policy to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances. The Prime Minister reiterated this to the House during questions on 29 January. Ministers regularly raise the issue of the death penalty in Pakistan at the highest levels both in terms of our principled stance and in supporting cases of British nationals facing the death penalty overseas. We also continue to regularly raise the issue of the blasphemy laws at a senior level with the authorities in Pakistan. The Senior Minister of State, my noble Friend the right hon. Baroness Warsi most recently raised our opposition to the death penalty with the Chief Minister of the Punjab on 27 January in the case of a British national convicted under Pakistan's blasphemy laws.

Pitcairn Islands

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of measures in place to protect children on the Pitcairn Islands from convicted sex offenders.

Mark Simmonds: A third Pitcairn Child Safety Review, commissioned by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development, was completed by independent experts in May 2013. The Government is working with the Pitcairn Island Council to implement these recommendations. Our commitment to strengthen the protection of children, young people and their families on Pitcairn remains a top priority.

Sexuality: Discrimination

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Commonwealth counterparts on amending the Commonwealth Charter to include opposition to discrimination on the basis of sexuality.

Hugo Swire: The UK has not had any discussions on the amendment of the Commonwealth Charter. The Commonwealth Charter states:
	"We are implacably opposed to all forms of discrimination, whether rooted in gender, race, colour, creed, political belief or other grounds".
	It remains our view that the phrase "all forms of discrimination" on "other grounds" covers discrimination against the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community as well as any other form of discrimination.

Uganda

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the situation of LGBT people in Uganda; and what recent representations he has made to his Ugandan counterpart on this issue.

Mark Simmonds: Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda. On 20 December 2013 the Ugandan Parliament passed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill; exact details are not yet known. The Bill requires Presidential assent to become law. We have consistently raised our concerns about the Bill and its potential impact on minority rights in Uganda. 1 last discussed this with the Ugandan Foreign Minister on 28 January 2013.

Uganda

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to his Ugandan counterpart following the approval of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill by the Ugandan Parliament; and what assessment he has made of the decision of President Museveni decision not to sign this Bill.

Mark Simmonds: The Bill was passed by the Ugandan Parliament on 20 December 2013, and requires Presidential Assent to become law. President Museveni is yet to respond formally. We have consistently raised our concerns about the Bill with the Ugandan Government at the most senior levels, both before it was passed by Parliament and after. Most recently, I last raised this issue with the Ugandan Foreign Minister during a meeting on 28 January 2014.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether officials in his Department have participated in any EC Working Group considering policy or law applying to use of unmanned aerial vehicles. [R]

Hugh Robertson: We are not aware of any EC Working Group considering policy or law to use unmanned aerial vehicles.

NORTHERN IRELAND

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will set out her Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if she will make a statement.

Theresa Villiers: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

SCOTLAND

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

David Mundell: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W, by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington).

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities if she will set out the Government Equalities Office's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Grant: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W, available at:
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140129/text/140129w0005.htm#1401306000008

Marriage

Nick Herbert: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities when she expects conversion of civil partnerships to marriages under Section 9 of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 to begin; and what the reasons are for the delay in starting this process.

Helen Grant: As the Government announced on 10 December 2013, we are working hard to ensure that couples wanting to convert their civil partnerships into marriages are able to do so as soon as possible. We aim to do this before the end of 2014.
	These aspects of implementing the Act take longer because they involve developing and implementing completely new procedures and processes. This contrasts with the work to make new marriages for same sex couples possible, where we have been able to build on existing processes so implementation is more straightforward.

HEALTH

Abortion

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 22 January 2014, Official Report, column 227W, on abortion, how many doctors have been challenged to defend their judgment that grounds for an abortion were met; and how many such doctors had their decision overturned in each of the last 30 years.

Jane Ellison: The Department does not hold this information.

Accident and Emergency Departments

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in how many constituencies there is not a full-time accident and emergency department.

Jane Ellison: No data has been collected centrally on the number of full-time accident and emergency departments since 2011.
	Where an organisation provides a facility which qualifies as an accident and emergency department under the definitions and guidance published by NHS England, it is required to include data for that facility in the information on the performance of accident and emergency departments which it submits to NHS England. This provider organisation level data on accident and emergency performance is published by NHS England as Weekly SitReps.

Action on Smoking and Health

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding the Action on Smoking and Health charity received from his Department in 2013-14; and what assessment he has made of how these funds have been spent.

Jane Ellison: For 2013-14, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) was awarded £175,000 grant from the Department for work to contribute to the achievement of the national ambitions in the Tobacco Control Plan, “Healthy Lives, Healthy People: A Tobacco Control Plan for England 2011”.
	The tobacco policy team monitors all grant activity and in this case holds regular governance meetings with ASH. In addition, we have received an update report from ASH in accordance with the terms of all grants awarded under Section 64 of the Health and Social Care Act 1968.
	To date, ASH has received £125,000 of the grant awarded for 2013-14.

Alcoholic Drinks: Rehabilitation

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the rates of referral are to specialist alcohol treatment services for people in each region and of each gender.

Jane Ellison: The following table shows new presentations to treatment services for primary alcohol problems in 2012-13 by strategic health authority, broken down by gender. National totals match those published in the alcohol annual statistics report in October 2013. “The Alcohol Statistics from the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS)—1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013” has been placed in the Library.
	
		
			 Strategic health authority Female Male Total 
			 North East Strategic Health Authority 1,642 3,032 4,674 
			 North West Strategic Health Authority 5,635 10,361 15,996 
		
	
	
		
			 Yorkshire and the Humber Strategic Health Authority 2,838 5,516 8,354 
			 East Midlands Strategic Health Authority 2,199 4,108 6,307 
			 West Midlands Strategic Health Authority 3,060 6,051 9,111 
			 East of England Strategic Health Authority 1,922 3,204 5,126 
			 London Strategic Health Authority 3,357 7,218 10,575 
			 South East Coast Strategic Health Authority 1,827 3,171 4,998 
			 South Central Strategic Health Authority 1,546 2,837 4,383 
			 South West Strategic Health Authority 2,227 3,910 6,137 
			 No primary care trust allocated 54 58 112 
			 National 26,307 49,466 75,773 
			 Source: The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System. 
		
	
	The data is presented by the former strategic health authorities, since this is the way that the alcohol treatment data was collected and reported until March 2013.

Ambulance Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what clinical standards he has put in place for ambulances run by private providers.

Jane Ellison: From 1 April 2011, a new system of regulation began for the independent ambulance sector. Providers of independent ambulance services need to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and need to meet its essential standards of quality and safety. The essential standards are available at:
	www.cqc.org.uk/organisations-we-regulate/registering-first-time/essential-standards
	It is the responsibility of individual NHS ambulance services to ensure 999 calls are attended by staff that are properly trained and are adequately equipped and to determine the type of vehicle and equipment required to provide an appropriate response to call-outs, according to the clinical needs of the patient.
	Independent or voluntary ambulance services may be used to support NHS ambulance services and can help manage peaks in demand.
	Where an NHS service provider subcontracts with a private provider, it is the responsibility of that ambulance service to ensure that services delivered are subject to rigorous governance arrangements and checks, including registration with the CQC.

Autism

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the next review of the adult autism strategy to take place, after the publication of the revised strategy in March 2014.

Norman Lamb: The current review of the adult autism strategy is due to be completed by the end of March 2014. No date has yet been set for a further review of the strategy. We will include details of this when we publish the revised strategy.

Autism

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support the Government provides for children with autism as they reach adulthood.

Norman Lamb: The Government's Mandate to NHS England calls for improvements in ensuring smooth transitions between children's and adult services; the new National Institute for Care Excellence quality standard for autism emphasises that a child's plan should cover the transition to adult services.
	Support for children with autism as they reach adulthood requires a coordinated approach from a range of agencies. Education, Health and Care plans for children with special educational needs—which the Children and Families Bill will introduce—cover the years from 0 to 25, providing a basis for planning effective transition.
	The Department for Education is funding Ambitious about Autism for their Finished at School project which is looking at innovative ways to help young people with autism make the transition from school to college, and sponsoring the Autism Education Trust in extending its training programme from schools into further education.
	‘The disability and health employment strategy’ of December 2013 sets out a range of proposals to enable disabled young people to make the transition to work.

Autism

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will introduce a fund for local authorities to encourage the development of new models of provision for people with autism;
	(2)  what steps the Government takes to raise awareness of how the public can support children and young people with autism;
	(3)  if he will introduce a community-based scheme to raise awareness of children and adults with autism.

Norman Lamb: As part of the ongoing Review of the Adult Autism Strategy, we are actively considering a variety of proposals from the National Autistic Society relating to awareness-raising, how local communities can become more autism-aware, and new models of provision for people with autism.

Chronic Illnesses

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of people with (a) long term conditions and (b) osteoarthritis currently have a personalised care plan.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of people with (a) long-term conditions and (b) osteoarthritis currently have a personalised care plan.

Norman Lamb: The information requested is not centrally held.
	Responsibility for determining the overall national approach to improving health related quality, of life for people with long-term conditions passed to NHS England and clinical commissioning groups in April 2013.
	One of the objectives in the Government's Mandate to NHS England is for the national health service to better empower patients to manage and make decisions about their own care and treatment. Achieving this objective would mean that by 2015 everyone with a long-term condition would be offered a personalised care plan that reflects their preferences and agreed decisions.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Daniel Poulter: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Fractures

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to promote comprehensive fracture liaison services.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government has taken to promote comprehensive fracture liaison services.

Norman Lamb: Responsibility for determining the overall national approach to improving clinical outcomes from healthcare services, including fracture liaison services (FLS), lies with NHS England.
	NHS England advises that it is aware that provision of good FLS is not uniform across the country and is working with clinical commissioning groups to support them to develop appropriate local services. It also advises that the FLS model recommended by the International Osteoporosis Foundation and the National Osteoporosis society is recognised as best practice and is being promoted.

Health Education: Sex

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government plans to take to address risks to public health caused by a rise in the incidence of risky sexual behaviour related to drug use.

Jane Ellison: Local authorities are responsible for commissioning sexual health and alcohol and drug services as part of their public health remit. This includes initiatives to address risky sexual behaviour related to drug use, if it is an issue in their area.
	A set of interlinked drug use and sexual behaviours, often referred to as ‘chem sex’ among a minority of men who have sex with men (MSM) is a serious health issue that is driving poor sexual and mental health. It is implicated in the transmission and acquisition of HIV and other blood borne viruses and in the rising numbers of shigella cases (a form of dysentery) in gay and bisexual men.
	Public Health England (PHE) is monitoring this situation, and has highlighted the importance of integrated working between sexual health and. drugs services. PHE has established a working group with key stakeholders across drugs and sexual health to improve intelligence about the size of the at-risk population, pool expertise and develop new guidance. PHE is also collaborating with a national steering group (Project Neptune) which is writing guidance for health care providers on the evidence base and expert consensus regarding treatment for club drugs and ‘legal highs’, including many of the drugs reported by MSM in the context of ‘chem sex’.
	There is less intelligence on the links between drug use and heterosexual risky sexual behaviour, but PHE is currently piloting a new surveillance system in sexual health clinics which will collect information on drug use, sexual risk and sexually transmitted infections/HIV outcomes. If successful, this will give a much better insight into the extent of this problem in heterosexuals as well as MSM. Also in the pipeline are new PHE resources to raise awareness of shigella.
	The Department continues to fund the Terrence Higgins Trust and their partner organisations, for targeted HIV prevention.

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2013, Official Report, columns 348-49W, on health services: reciprocal arrangements, what steps his Department is taking to recoup balances outstanding from those European countries in relation to EHIC payments; and if he will make it his policy to withhold government EHIC payments from those countries which owe the UK money under those arrangements.

Jane Ellison: The United Kingdom takes every action possible under European Union regulations to recoup outstanding balances, including putting forward the strongest possible evidence promptly to back our claims. New rules allowing interest to be charged on outstanding payments are being put in place. The UK will use these to the full.
	Under European Union Regulation 987/2009, which covers the period from 1 May 2010 onwards, interest is payable on payments made more than 18 months after the claim has been received. The European Commission is currently working on finalising guidance on the full details of how to calculate interest on late payments. The UK will be using that guidance to calculate interest payments when it is finalised, and will be actively pursuing the payment of interest on overdue payments.

Health Trainers

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many health trainers there were in the NHS in each year since May 2010.

Daniel Poulter: The number of health trainers working in the national health service is not collected centrally. This staff group is not identified separately in the NHS annual workforce census.

Health: Finance

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2013, Official Report, column 469W, on health: finance, when the figures for Q2 and Q3 will be available.

Jane Ellison: The total public health ring-fence allocation for 2013-14 is £2.66 billion. At the end of September 2013 £1.18 billion had been spent, 44.2% of the total allocation. The following table shows total local authorities allocation and related spend at quarter two. Quarter two data was published on 6 December 2013.
	The quarter three data will be published on 11 March 2014 by the Department for Communities and Local Government.
	
		
			 Total public health allocations to local authorities for the year 2013-14 and total spent at the end of September 2013 
			 £000 
			 Local authority Public health ring fenced grant budget 2013-14 Total spent on public health services at Q2 
			 Barking and Dagenham 12,921 4,329 
			 Barnet 13,799 6,899 
			 Barnsley 13,571 4,727 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 7,183 3,868 
			 Bedford 6,676 2,895 
			 Bexley 6,886 2,084 
			 Birmingham 78,636 40,729 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 12,776 4,775 
			 Blackpool 17,457 8,534 
			 Bolton 18,115 9,006 
			 Bournemouth 7,542 2,470 
			 Bracknell Forest 2,772 1,418 
			 Bradford 31,545 13,442 
			 Brent 18,335 9,686 
			 Brighton and Hove 18,185 6,776 
			 Bristol 27,313 13,817 
			 Bromley 12,601 6,261 
			 Buckinghamshire 15,681 5,315 
			 Bury 9,147 3,448 
			 Calderdale 9,829 3,965 
			 Cambridgeshire 21,230 10,616 
			 Camden 25,649 6,818 
			 Central Bedfordshire 9,873 5,839 
			 Cheshire East 13,762 7,312 
			 Cheshire West and Chester 13,371 7,041 
			 City of London 1,651 160 
			 Cornwall 17,839 9,749 
			 Coventry 17,832 6,036 
			 Croydon 18,312 8,656 
			 Cumbria 14,176 4,744 
			 Darlington 6,989 2,259 
			 Derby City 13,167 6,584 
			 Derbyshire 34,680 19,292 
			 Devon 20,748 10,776 
			 Doncaster 19,648 9,649 
			 Dorset 12,538 6,294 
			 Dudley 18,457 7,136 
			 Durham 44,533 13,604 
			 Ealing 21,376 10,688 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 8,341 3,944 
		
	
	
		
			 East Sussex 23,839 5,294 
			 Enfield 12,961 5,855 
			 Essex 48,874 24,424 
			 Gateshead 15,401 4,725 
			 Gloucestershire 21,126 7,691 
			 Greenwich 18,277 7,989 
			 Hackney 29,005 7,466 
			 Halton 8,510 4,256 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 20,287 10,300 
			 Hampshire 36,753 15,412 
			 Haringey 17,587 2,580 
			 Harrow 8,874 2,486 
			 Hartlepool 8,255 4,224 
			 Havering 8,833 3,361 
			 Herefordshire 7,753 3,878 
			 Hertfordshire 34,220 16,186 
			 Hillingdon 15,281 7,640 
			 Hounslow 12,804 5,500 
			 Isle of Wight 5,993 2,953 
			 Islington 24,737 12,392 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 20,636 10,908 
			 Kent CC 49,843 22,910 
			 Kingston upon Thames 9,049 3,924 
			 Kingston-upon-Hull 21,945 7,829 
			 Kirklees 22,603 11,266 
			 Knowsley 15,929 5,348 
			 Lambeth 25,438 12,718 
			 Lancashire 57,991 28,888 
			 Leeds 36,855 17,864 
			 Leicester City 19,995 12,763 
			 Leicestershire 20,206 8,951 
			 Lewisham 19,541 9,605 
			 Lincolnshire 27,542 10,919 
			 Liverpool 40,308 12,530 
			 Luton 11,877 5,013 
			 Manchester 40,105 20,323 
			 Medway Towns 13,170 6,590 
			 Merton 8,985 4,471 
			 Middlesbrough 15,932 7,565 
			 Milton Keynes 7,989 3,034 
			 Newcastle 20,721 8,790 
			 Newham 23,738 11,870 
			 Norfolk 29,798 11,379 
			 North East Lincolnshire 9,700 5,601 
			 North Lincolnshire 8,071 2,702 
			 North Somerset 7,381 3,690 
			 North Tyneside 10,417 5,423 
			 North Yorkshire 19,021 9,728 
			 Northamptonshire 26,839 13,844 
			 Northumberland 13,043 5,233 
			 Nottingham City 27,081 12,766 
			 Nottinghamshire 35,135 12,795 
			 Oldham 13,559 5,714 
			 Oxfordshire 25,264 12,729 
			 Peterborough 8,446 3,160 
			 Plymouth 11,160 5,033 
			 Poole 5,892 2,946 
		
	
	
		
			 Portsmouth 15,737 3,705 
			 Reading 7,466 3,472 
			 Redbridge 10,374 5,101 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 10,620 5,310 
			 Richmond upon Thames 7,676 2,694 
			 Rochdale 14,256 7,692 
			 Rotherham 13,790 6,779 
			 Rutland 1,044 343 
			 Salford 17,075 8,993 
			 Sandwell 20,816 7,593 
			 Sefton 19,408 9,660 
			 Sheffield 29,665 10,360 
			 Shropshire 8,948 4,483 
			 Slough UA 4,988 2,026 
			 Solihull 9,635 4,912 
			 Somerset 14,103 7,619 
			 South Gloucestershire 6,677 3,216 
			 South Tyneside 12,565 7,331 
			 Southampton 14,313 7,157 
			 Southend-on-Sea 7,327 2,363 
			 Southwark 21,809 10,574 
			 St Helens 12,680 4,319 
			 Staffordshire 32,322 15,781 
			 Stockport 12,360 5,039 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 12,711 4,251 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 19,690 3,364 
			 Suffolk 25,572 7,375 
			 Sunderland 20,656 9,180 
			 Surrey 23,237 5,961 
			 Sutton 8,384 2,745 
			 Swindon 7,891 3,661 
			 Tameside 11,454 3,460 
			 Telford and the Wrekin 10,616 5,157 
			 Thurrock 7,417 n/a 
			 Torbay 7,150 3,576 
			 Tower Hamlets 31,382 15,426 
			 Trafford 10,171 2,510 
			 Wakefield 20,230 8,309 
			 Walsall 14,984 6,732 
			 Waltham Forest 11,161 5,580 
			 Wandsworth 24,738 12,355 
			 Warrington 10,052 5,034 
			 Warwickshire 21,216 12,089 
			 West Berkshire 4,381 2,247 
			 West Sussex 26,698 9,590 
			 Westminster 30,384 15,325 
			 Wigan 23,020 11,115 
			 Wiltshire 13,261 7,255 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 3,192 1,151 
			 Wirral 25,720 12,730 
			 Wokingham 3,839 821 
			 Wolverhampton 18,770 9,966 
			 Worcestershire 25,806 14,046 
			 York 6,641 3,208 
			    
			 England 2,661,795 1,177,423 
			 n/a = data not available Source: Department for Communities and Local Government

Hospitals: Greater Manchester

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) black, (b) red, (c) amber and (d) green alerts there has been at (i) central Manchester University Hospitals Foundation NHS Trust and (ii) University Hospitals South Manchester Trust in each month of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: This information is not collected centrally.
	We have therefore written to the chair of the Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the University Hospitals of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust informing them of the hon. Member’s query. They will reply shortly and a copy of the letters will be placed in the Library.

Human Papillomavirus

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to provide immunisation for the HPV virus in young males.

Jane Ellison: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has agreed that evaluation of potential extensions to the programme to include men who have sex with men (MSM) should be a priority. JCVI agreed to the formation of an HPV sub-committee to consider a number of key issues on HPV vaccination, including vaccinating MSM, and potential extension of the programme to include adolescent boys. The HPV sub-committee met for the first time on 20 January 2014 to review available evidence on the impact and cost-effectiveness of potential extensions to the HPV vaccination programme.
	The HPV sub-committee will report its findings to JCVI following consideration of future studies by Public Health England on the impact and cost-effectiveness of extending HPV vaccination to MSM and/or adolescent boys. It is expected that the MSM modelling study will be completed at the end of 2014 at the earliest, and the adolescent boys modelling study will be completed at the end of 2015 at the earliest. We will consider and respond to any JCVI's recommendations in due course. This issue was the main subject of the debate in Westminster Hall on 8 January 2014.

Manor Hospital Walsall

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 January, Official Report, column 178W, on Manor Hospital, Walsall, if the Department has now received notification arising from the report of the Mid Staffordshire Special Administrators and Monitor for additional investment at the Manor Hospital, Walsall, in view of the need for additional capacity to take in patients arising from external situations; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), received the Trust Special Administrators' final report on 16 January and has a maximum of 30 working days from that date to evaluate the recommendations against the requirements set out in legislation. To date the Department has not received an application for funding from Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust in relation to the proposals.

Medical Records: Databases

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether individuals whose medical confidentiality has been breached by the caredata programme will be notified of their eligibility for compensation;
	(2)  whether households which do not receive a Better information means better care leaflet will be able to seek legal redress against GPs who have acted as data controllers for their practice and uploaded patient information to care.data.

Daniel Poulter: As data controllers, general practitioners (GPs) must meet fair processing obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998, including an obligation to ensure that patients are aware of how their personal confidential data are shared and their right to object. The care.data leaflet drop is only part of a comprehensive range of awareness raising activities, which also includes: leaflets and posters in every general practice in England; articles in newspapers; information on the NHS Choices website; and via social media; as well as information cascaded via 350,000 patient groups and charities.
	GPs are responsible for the personal data that they hold and could face civil action if they breached patient confidentiality or they could be fined by the Information Commissioner if their action breached data protection law. However, GPs are required by law to provide data to the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) for care.data and provided that a GP releases no more data than that which is requested by the HSCIC, there would be no grounds in which to take action against the GP.

Medical Records: Databases

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  whether individuals will be notified if their personal data has been provided to researchers with identifying details provided under care.data;
	(2)  with whom is data held by the Health and Social Care Information shared; and for what purpose.

Daniel Poulter: There are very strict rules about what information the Health and Social Care Information Centre can release to the national health service and to outside organisations.
	Information can be released in three ways:
	anonymised information: this information does not identify any individuals;
	potentially identifiable information: this is information about individual patients but it does not include any identifiers; and
	identifiable information: information that identifies an individual can only be disclosed where there is a legal basis for doing so.
	Only researchers who have obtained the patient's express permission or who have been granted legal approval are allowed to access information that identifies individuals. Only the Secretary of State for Health or the Health Research Authority can grant this legal approval and they do so following independent advice from the Confidentiality Advisory Group (CAG). CAG considers each application against the legal framework.
	Patients would not be notified individually.

Medical Records: Databases

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether households which have opted out of receiving bulk, junk or unaddressed mail will receive a Better information means better care leaflet.

Daniel Poulter: Royal Mail has confirmed that the leaflet will be delivered to all households in England, including those that have opted out of receiving bulk, junk, or unaddressed mail.

Medical Records: Databases

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that all individuals living in (a) shared accommodation, (b) care homes, (c) residential homes, (d) blocks of flats or apartments (e) university halls of residence and (f) prisons will receive an individual copy of the Better information means better care leaflet.

Daniel Poulter: General practitioners (GPs) are responsible for fair processing including raising awareness among hard to reach groups. The leaflet, "Better information means better care" which explains how information from medical records is used to improve the quality of care is being sent to all households in England, this includes any residential address and shared accommodation, care and residential homes, flats or apartments, universities and halls of residences. NHS England is currently working with the Prison Health Teams to look at how this issue could be raised through the work that they do.
	The leaflet forms one part of a wide range of local, regional, and national activities for raising awareness among patients, which also includes: leaflets and posters that have been sent to every GP practice in England; articles in newspapers; interviews on radio and television; information on the NHS Choices website; information disseminated via social media; and information cascaded via 350,000 patient groups and charities.

Musculoskeletal Disorders

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has given to local authorities on assessing the effect of musculoskeletal conditions on their local population, including the effect of musculoskeletal conditions in joint strategic needs assessments.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has given to local authorities on (a) assessment of the effect of musculoskeletal conditions on their local population and (b) inclusion of musculoskeletal conditions in Joint Strategic Need Assessments.

Norman Lamb: The Department has not issued any guidance to local authorities on musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions nor has NHS England.
	MSK conditions, such as rheumatism and back pain, are common and account for 15-20% of general practitioner (GP) consultations. Most patients can be successfully managed by their GPs locally, but those with rare or particularly complex MSK disorders can be referred on to a specialist service.
	Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNAs) and Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategies (JHWSs) are a key element of local strategic planning processes, and the means by which the current and future health and wellbeing needs of the local population are determined. JSNAs and JHWSs are agreed through health and wellbeing boards.
	JSNAs need to cover the health and care needs of the whole local populationand may well include MSK conditions. However, it would not be appropriate for the Department to highlight any particular care group or area of need over another as this would risk undermining the purpose of JSNAs and JHWSs being objective, comprehensive and locally-owned. In March 2013 the Department published statutory guidance to support health and wellbeing boards in undertaking JSNAs and JHWSs “Statutory Guidance on Joint Strategic Needs Assessments and Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategies”. A copy has been placed in the Library and is available at the following link:
	https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/media.dh.gov.uk/network/18/files/2013/03/Statutory-Guidance-on-Joint-Strategic-Needs-Assessments-and-Joint-Health-and-Wellbeing-Strategies-March-20131.pdf

NHS

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when each strategic health authority was abolished as a legal entity; and when the chief executive officer of each strategic health authority ceased to be paid (a) a salary and (b) any other payment by NHS England or any other NHS body.

Jane Ellison: All strategic health authorities were legally abolished on 1 April 2013 under the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
	The Department cannot determine whether former strategic health authority chief executives continued to be paid a salary or any other payment after this date by NHS England or any other national health service body.

NHS: Finance

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the guidance his Department gives individual funding request panels on interpretation of the rules surrounding clinical exceptionality and taking into account the human impact of their decisions.

Norman Lamb: NHS England has published guidance, “Interim Commissioning Policy: Individual funding requests”. Appendix A of the guidance sets out advice on exceptionality. A copy is available on NHS England's website:
	www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/cp-03.pdf

Radiotherapy

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  when NHS England's review into Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) will be published; whether the SRS Clinical Reference Group assisted in writing this review; and which other stakeholders were consulted by NHS England during this review's production;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 148W, on radiotherapy, from where the clinical reference group will gather its evidence to examine the clinical and cost effectiveness of stereotactic ablative radiotherapy;
	(3)  pursuant to the answer of 13 March 2013, Official Report, column 248W and 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 148W, on radiotherapy, whether the stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) consortium will be part of the review team examining the clinical and cost effectiveness of SABR.

Jane Ellison: The report of the review for stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS)/stereotactic radiotherapy (SRT) is not yet finalised and no publication date has been set. The report concerns a need assessment and services review into SRS/SRT for intracranial conditions. To date, NHS England has contacted providers who are currently contracted to deliver SRS/SRT for the purpose of obtaining capacity information.
	The draft report, produced by the review team, includes representation from the SRS Clinical Reference Group (CRG). This draft is ready to be shared for further engagement with the CRG to enable NHS England to consider their views as part of its consideration of the final report and the impact assessment.
	There is further work to be completed before the report, and its potential options for implementation, is considered formally by NHS England. Following this work, NHS England intends to publish the report and consult with stakeholders ahead of any final decision being taken.
	Using standard medical evidence search methodology, the Radiotherapy CRG will review evidence of the clinical and cost effectiveness of stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) that has been published in peer reviewed journals in the time since the production of the current SABR policy.
	NHS England would strongly encourage the SABR consortium to be registered as a stakeholder in the Radiotherapy CRG in order for their views to be considered as part of the process.

Radiotherapy

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 January 2014, Official Report, column 83W, on radiotherapy, what the tariff paid for stereotactic radiosurgery treatment is by local commissioners in each English region.

Daniel Poulter: The tariff paid for stereotactic radiosurgery treatment is negotiated locally between commissioners and providers, rather than at national level. As such we do not hold the information centrally.

School Milk

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when his Department plans to publish its response to Next Steps for Nursery Milk consultation, which closed in October 2012.

Daniel Poulter: The Department is conducting a comprehensive analysis of all the responses to the nursery milk consultation, the impact assessment and the accompanying survey of child-care providers. A Government response on the future operation of the nursery milk scheme will be made after full consideration is given to these and other relevant information.
	The Government remains fully committed to continuing the nursery milk scheme.

School Milk

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which directorate of his Department is currently responsible for nursery milk; and on what grounds the responsible directorate has changed since May 2010.

Daniel Poulter: The Public Health Directorate is responsible for nursery milk. The directorate responsible for nursery milk has not changed since May 2010, although the responsible division within the directorate changed following an internal reorganisation.
	The Government remains fully committed to continuing the nursery milk scheme.

Skin Cancer

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what discussions he has had on the availability and development of innovative treatments for melanoma with (a) the Christie NHS Foundation Trust, (b) other specialist cancer centres, (c) NHS England and (d) the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence;
	(2)  what discussions he has had about the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence's appraisal of ipilimumab for use as a first line treatment for advanced melanoma in the light of the high incidence of melanoma amongst young people.

Jane Ellison: Ministers have had no such discussions with these organisations.
	The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an independent body and is responsible for the development of its guidance. It would be inappropriate for Ministers to interfere with the development of NICE guidance.
	Departmental officials may discuss treatments for melanoma with NICE and other interested parties, including as part of the topic selection process for NICE technology appraisals and in considering potential patient access schemes for specific medicines.

Stem Cells

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to (a) improve awareness of stem cell transplants for treating cancers and (b) increase registration of stem cell donors.

Jane Ellison: The Government allocated, in 2011-12 and 2012-13, a total of £8 million to NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) and Anthony Nolan to help improve stem cell transplant services in the United Kingdom. This funding has resulted in an aligned UK stem cell register, an increase in adult stem cell donors recruited to the register and an increase in the number of cord blood stem cells banked.
	Both NHSBT and Anthony Nolan work to raise public awareness of stem cell transplants and to promote stem cell donations. For 2013-14, a further £4 million in discretionary funding has been allocated to continue this work. The delivery reports from NHSBT and Anthony Nolan are showing that the benefits are being built on this year.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 17 January 2014, Official Report, column 181W, on the electoral register, and columns 189-90W, on the electoral register: Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on the registration of attainers in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) Great Britain.

Greg Clark: As was the case under previous Administrations details of internal discussions are not normally disclosed.

Electoral Register

David Blunkett: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what (a) grants and (b) other external activity have been issued under the Democratic Engagement Programme to date.

Greg Clark: The Government is making available up to £4.2 million to maximise the rate of voter registration as part of the transition to individual electoral registration in 2014.
	Every local authority in the country will receive funding to help them with the costs of local activities for maximising registration.
	In addition, the Government is funding directly a number of national organisations to develop approaches to maximise registration among particular groups.
	To improve registration levels for young people, Cabinet Office has also made the Rock Enrol! learning resource available, which promotes democratic engagement and encourages young people to register to vote.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will set out his Office's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Nicholas Clegg: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, the right hon. Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

CABINET OFFICE

British American Tobacco

Luciana Berger: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 160W, on British American Tobacco, what official meetings the Minister without Portfolio has had with representatives of British American Tobacco on issues other than policy.

Kenneth Clarke: None. As part of the Department’s transparency programme, details of ministerial meetings with external organisations are published on the Cabinet Office website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications

Efficiency and Reform Group

Michael Dugher: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how many staff of his Department worked in the Efficiency and Reform Group in (a) April 2013 and (b) the latest period in which figures are available;
	(2)  when he plans to reply to question 171738, tabled by the hon. Member for Barnsley East on 16 October 2013 for answer on 18 October 2013.

Francis Maude: Apologies for the delay in answering this question but it has proved challenging to establish accurate baseline numbers for staffing.
	The Efficiency and Reform Group was founded after the 2010 General Election to tackle wasteful expenditure and reform the way Whitehall works. Just one example of the waste we found was that one major service integrator was charging £30,000 to change a logo on a web page. Other examples are detailed in Sir Philip Green’s Efficiency Review, which found that while paper cost one department £73 per box, another paid just £8.
	Last year alone, ERG supported departments in achieving savings of over £10 billion. This follows £5.5 billion saved in 2011-12 and £3.75 billion in 2010-11. I want to pay tribute to the hard work of many civil servants, in my department and across Whitehall. These civil servants have delivered these savings by acting as the taxpayers’ champion inside Government.
	A lot of this work simply was not being done under the previous Government, but the predecessor organisations employed more than twice as many members of staff as the efficiency and reform group now employs.
	If this work had been started before May 2010, billions of pounds of extra savings would have been possible. In fact at the time of the last general election, the Government did not even know who its top suppliers were nor how much they were spending on each. It was a remarkably lax way to treat taxpayers’ money.
	Across Government the number of civil servants paid over £150,000 has fallen by 35% since the general election. Spend on consultants and contingent labour has fallen by 82%. In addition ERG’s work has substantially boosted the proportion of Government business going to SMEs.
	Information on staffing within the Cabinet Office is published regularly in our organograms. The most recent includes information from 31 March and will be updated in due course to include information from September. It is available here:
	http://data.gov.uk/organogram/cabinet-office
	The staff working within ERG should be seen within the context of those previously working at the centre of Government prior to May 2010, as well as of the new functions now delivered by the Cabinet Office. It is difficult to establish an accurate baseline but the following numbers should provide some guidance. After the last general election, machinery of government changes moved the National School of Government, the Central Office of Information and the Office of Government Commerce into the Cabinet Office. The NSG had 197 staff, OGC had 298 people and the COI 735. These organisations were then disbanded. There were also 121 people working for DirectGov, 43 for the Office for Government CIO, five for Digital Engagement, 52 in the Group Strategy Unit and 12 for BusinessLink and 336 for Buying Solutions.
	As of 31 Dec 2013 there the following staff working in the following ERG clusters (numbers given as full-time equivalents): MPA 53.8; Corporate 93.1; Efficiency 103.8; Transformation 115.8; Government Digital Service 235.2; Central Teams 24 and Government Procurement Service 417.8.
	ERG is saving money for taxpayers but with fewer staff than were employed before May 2010.

Public Expenditure

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the level of Government spending was in (a) cash terms and (b) as a percentage of GDP in each year since 1990.

Nick Hurd: The information requested fails within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Peter Fullerton
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question to ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the level of Government of spending was in (a) cash terms and (b) as a percentage of GDP in each year since 1990. 185648
	The attached table provides central and local government current expenditure in cash terms and as a percentage of GDP since 1990.
	
		
			 UK Central and local Government current expenditure 2000 to 2013, United Kingdom 
			  Central Government expenditure (£ millions) As a percentage of GDP1 (%) Local Government2,3 current expenditure (£ millions) As a percentage of GDP1 (%) General Government current expenditure (£ millions) As a percentage of GDP1 (%) 
			 1990 188,886 32.9 12,697 2.2 201,583 35.1 
			 1991 213,545 35.3 9,439 1.6 222,984 36.9 
			 1992 237,805 37.7 8,250 1.3 246,055 39.0 
			 1993 251,703 37.9 7,859 1.2 259,562 39.1 
			 1994 264,180 37.4 9,202 1.3 273,382 38.7 
			 1995 274,976 36.8 11,310 1.5 286,286 38.3 
			 1996 283,221 35.6 11,131 1.4 294,352 37.0 
			 1997 291,145 34.4 12,827 1.5 303,972 36.0 
			 1998 297,562 33.3 14,603 1.6 312,165 35.0 
			 1999 306,625 32.7 15,001 1.6 321,626 34.3 
			 2000 322,620 32.7 18,121 1.8 340,741 34.5 
			 2001 341,140 33.1 16,858 1.6 357,998 34.7 
			 2002 368,221 34.0 18,571 1.7 386,792 35.8 
			 2003 399,783 34.8 18,053 1.6 417,836 36.4 
			 2004 426,866 35.2 21,186 1.7 448,052 36.9 
		
	
	
		
			 2005 452,831 35.5 23,782 1.9 476,613 37.3 
			 2006 480,571 35.6 21,886 1.6 502,457 37.2 
			 2007 502,782 35.2 25,668 1.8 528,450 37.0 
			 2008 531,732 36.4 28,636 2.0 560,368 38.3 
			 2009 562,036 39.7 29,657 2.1 591,693 41.7 
			 2010 604,877 40.7 26,093 1.8 630,970 42.5 
			 2011 612,967 39.9 27,665 1.8 640,632 41.7 
			 2012 632,848 40.4 22,622 1.4 655,470 41.8 
			 2013 637,452 — — — — — 
			 1 GDP at market prices, not seasonally adjusted. This version of GDP has not been produced for the final quarter of 2013 as it relies on income and expenditure data not available in the first estimate of GDP. 2 Local government current expenditure data is not currently published for the final quarter of 2013. 3 The fall in local government current expenditure in 1991 resulted from changes to grants to and from Central Government. Source: ONS/HMT

Unemployment: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people aged 24 and under have been unemployed for over a year in each of the last 20 years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated January 2014
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people aged 24 and under have been unemployed for over a year in each of the last 20 years. 185738
	I refer the Rt Honourable Gentleman to the answer provided on 14 January 2014, Hansard reference 182556. I have provided a link to the answer provided in Hansard.
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140114/text/140114w0002.htm#140114108001879

Universal Credit

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the effect of the exclusion of universal credit claimants on the overall claimant count in (a) April, (b) May, (c) June, (d) July, (e) August, (f) September, (g) October, (h) November and (i) December 2013.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Peter Fullerton dated January 2014
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the effect of the exclusion of universal credit claimants on the overall claimant count in (a) April, (b) May, (c) June, (d) July, (e) August, (f) September, (g) October, (h) November and (i) December 2013. (185690)
	Prior to the introduction of Universal Credit (UC), the Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiled the Claimant Count from the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentreplus Administrative System. With the introduction of UC it was intended to extend this definition to include those claimants of UC who were out of work and subject to a full set of work search requirements. However, initially the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have not been able to supply ONS with this information in a way that has allowed its inclusion within the Claimant Count, resulting in the exclusion of UC claims from this measure.
	ONS initial assessment was that the impact of the exclusion of UC claims would be small, relative to the overall level and changes within the Claimant Count. This was based on the Pathfinder initially being rolled out in a single Jobcentreplus office and for a limited range of claimants. This assessment was supported by monitoring the change in the number of JSA claimants at that Jobcentreplus office relative to the change in the number of claimants of other nearby Jobcentreplus offices. Continued monitoring of the number of JSA claimants at that Jobcentreplus office, along with the other Pathfinder Jobcentreplus offices as UC was rolled-out, confirmed the assessment that the impact on the Claimant Count was small.
	On 3 December 2013 DWP published Universal Credit claimants in pathfinder areas—experimental official statistics to September 2013. This showed that at 30 September 2013, a total of 2,030 people were on the UC caseload. This figure would be an overestimate of the effect on the Claimant Count at that point, since it includes the whole UC caseload and not just those who were out of work and subject to a full set of work search requirements. For example, this total would include a number of people who had moved into work and were still eligible for UC subsequent to their initial claim.
	On 22 January 2014 DWP published Universal Credit claimants in pathfinder areas—experimental official statistics to October 2013. This showed that at 31 October a total of 2,720 people were on the UC caseload. The increase of 690 in the UC caseload occurred over a similar period to the Claimant Count excluding UC claimants decreasing by 34,300 between 10 October and 14 November 2013.
	ONS is continuing to monitor the impact that the roll-out of UC is having on the Jobcentres affected and will continue to assess whether it considers the impact to be small or more significant in the context of the level and changes in the Claimant Count. ONS intends to include UC claimants within the Claimant Count once a suitable timely supply of information becomes available. At this time it is expected that revisions will be made to the periods since the introduction of UC to produce a Claimant Count including the appropriate subset of claimants of this benefit.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk

DEFENCE

Defence Co-operation

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on defence co-operation between the UK and EU and NATO member states; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Hammond: The International Defence Engagement Strategy, which is available in the Library of the House, sets out how Defence can contribute towards the Government's foreign policy objectives, including through our relationships with NATO allies and EU member states.
	This policy is strengthened by regular attendance of UK Defence Ministers at EU and NATO Ministerial meetings. I look forward to discussions with my NATO colleagues at the next NATO Ministerial, later this month in Brussels.

Helicopter Capabilities

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to upgrade the armed forces' helicopter capabilities.

Philip Dunne: As my hon. Friend will recall from our exchanges in December we have so far spent over £2 billion acquiring new helicopters and modernising our existing helicopter fleet, including buying 14 new Chinooks, the release to service of Merlin Mk2 and Wildcat, and we have now taken delivery of nine of 24 upgraded Puma Mk2 at RAF Benson in his constituency.
	He will also have seen that the Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), announced last week investment of £760 million with Agusta Westland as the largest part of a near £1 billion commitment comprising £454 million to upgrade the Merlin Mk3 fleet to transfer them to the Commando Helicopter Force and some £500 million to provide maintenance and support for our Apache fleet.

British Forces: Germany

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent progress has been made on the return of British forces from Germany.

Mark Francois: The Ministry of Defence continues to make good progress on the return of British Forces from Germany and remains on target to deliver our 2010 strategic defence and security review commitment to draw down 50% of personnel based in Germany by 2015 and the remainder by 2020.
	Approximately 6,000 personnel and their families have returned to the UK to date.

Private Contractors/Agency Workers

Julie Hilling: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the use of private contractors and agency workers in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the use of private contractors and agency workers in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence, like other large complex organisations in both the public and private sectors, makes use of contractors and agency staff when necessary to provide specialised services, or to bridge the gap while recruitment for permanent civilian posts takes place. Ensuring complex projects are fully staffed with suitably qualified individuals is critical in mitigating delays and ensuring value for money for the taxpayer.
	Indeed, private contractors form an integral part of the Whole Force Concept within which the service personnel, civil servants and the private sector combine to recruit, train, equip and support our world class armed forces, as they have been doing magnificently in Afghanistan.

Recruitment: IT System

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress he made in improving the IT system used for recruitment to the armed forces.

Philip Hammond: As I said in response to the question from the hon. Member for Glenrothes (Lindsay Roy), the recruiting element of the Army website was updated in December, a new medical questionnaire was launched last week and a new simplified and mobile and tablet compatible application form will be rolled-out later this week.
	I do not underestimate the recruitment challenge we are facing. I am aware that there have been difficulties with the recruitment process. These need to be dealt with methodically and that is what we are doing. But we always knew that recruitment was going to be more challenging following the drawdown from Afghanistan and the recent high profile redundancy campaigns.

Armed Forces Covenant 2014

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his priorities are in respect of the armed forces covenant in 2014.

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his priorities are in respect of the armed forces covenant in 2014.

Anna Soubry: The Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), published the Armed Forces Covenant Annual Report on 16 December last year. This set out our commitments for the coming year, across a range of activities, including accommodation, health care, and education.

Accountancy

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how much his Department has spent on redundancy payouts for those made redundant within his Department's accountancy department since 2010;
	(2)  how many people were working in his Department's accountancy department in each year since 2010;
	(3)  how many officials in his Department working within the accountancy department have been made redundant since 2010.

Anna Soubry: I will write to the hon. Member shortly.
	Substantive answer from Anna Soubry to Kevan Jones:
	Further to the answer I gave you on 22 January 2014 (Official Report, column 220W) to your questions on the Ministry of Defence's accountancy department, I am now able to provide you with a substantive answer.
	The Ministry of Defence does not have an ‘accountancy department’. However, the following table sets out details of civilian staff working in the Finance Job Family (FJF) in each year since 2010. The FJF covers a number of finance-related disciplines, including accounting operations, financial systems management, budget management, financial planning and resource management.
	
		
			 Numbers of staff working in the Finance Job Family (FJF) 
			 As at 30 September Number of Finance staff 
			 2010 3,310 
			 2011 3,110 
			 2012 2,580 
			 2013 2,490 
		
	
	A total of 656 civilian staff working within the FJF have left the Department on Voluntary Early Release terms (VERS) since 2010. Compensation payments to these staff under the terms of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme amount to around £23 million. However, this figure needs to be seen in the context of the tough decisions made by this Government since 2010; we estimate that by Financial Year 2021-22 we will have achieved cumulative savings of some £23 billion as a result of reductions in service and civilian personnel and greater efficiency in the conduct of non-front line activities.

Armed Forces: Discharges

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to (a) help (i) Army families not eligible for final tour of duty allowance and (ii) other Army families cover the cost of moving out of service families accommodation and into civilian homes and (b) reduce the time between the end of service date and pension and resettlement payments.

Anna Soubry: Although the Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not fund the relocation of personnel on joining or leaving the armed forces, schemes are available to assist Service personnel in purchasing their own homes, including Forces Help to Buy.
	The aim of the Final Tour of Duty (FTOD) provision is to assist eligible personnel, in their final tour of duty, with meeting the costs of settling themselves and/or immediate family at a selected place of residence in the UK. When approaching their final tour, personnel select a preferred location and career managers are required to try and locate them within 50 miles or 90 minutes travelling time of this location. Where this is not possible, a Service person may be eligible for the FTOD provision.
	If personnel are moving on assignment and choose to purchase a civilian home from which they will commute, they are entitled to claim movement of effects and disturbance expenses. If they choose to purchase a civilian home from which they do not intend to commute, but which is where their immediate family will reside, they may still be entitled to claim movement of effects and disturbance expenses.
	The Service Personnel and Veterans Agency is unaware of any issues which have occurred as a result of the timings of pension and resettlement payments after the end of service date.

Armed Forces: Schools

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to ensure service children returning from Germany are not disadvantaged in applications for school places.

Anna Soubry: The Ministry of Defence's Directorate Children and Young People (DCYP) has created the Education of Service Children Change Programme, which brings together a range of initiatives concerned with changes in Defence and wider Government policy that impact upon Service children.
	One element of the Programme primarily addresses the educational needs of Service children returning from Germany between 2014 and 2019, the vast majority of whom will be looking to be placed in the state sector, as well as those affected by major unit moves within the UK.
	This work builds upon the close working relationship that the DCYP has with the Department for Education (DFE), Devolved Administrations and local authorities, and all parties are committed to continuing this work to ensure that Service children are not disadvantaged.
	Education Planning Groups have been established in Wiltshire, Hampshire, North Yorkshire and Leuchars (Fife) to ensure that data about Service children are shared and the needs of children and young people are taken into account when planning school places.

Armed Forces: Self-harm and Suicide

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether self-harming or suicidal ideation among disaffected armed forces personnel are grounds for medical discharge; and whether he has received legal advice on this matter.

Anna Soubry: Any episode of self-harm or declaration of suicidal ideation by a member of the UK armed forces will be considered on an individual basis, and any recommendation for further action will only be made following an assessment by a qualified Service psychiatrist. Many such cases will be treated within the Service, and medical discharge will only be recommended if it is assessed the individual's condition is unlikely to improve as a result of further in-service treatment. A representative of the Ministry of Defence's Central Legal Services sits on the Medical Policy Steering Group, through which medical fitness policies are approved.

Armed Forces: Training

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he has taken to (a) provide access to training and funding for training for returning service personnel and (b) help spouses of returning service personnel return to work or access training.

Anna Soubry: Most Service personnel returning to the UK from overseas postings, including those in Germany, will continue their careers in the armed forces in the normal way. Their training is governed by a systematic approach and is regularly re-assessed to ensure personnel have the right skills to deliver Defence outputs. This process provides the mechanism by which options for further development, including apprenticeships and higher apprenticeships where appropriate, can be examined.
	Training is also an integral part of our broader efforts to help Service personnel make the transition into civilian life. Service leavers may qualify for a resettlement training grant and Government-sponsored enhanced learning credits, to help towards the cost of nationally recognised qualifications.
	The Career Transition Partnership (CTP) provides a resettlement programme including up to 35 days retraining time and access to a wide range of accredited vocational training courses and workshops. The CTP service, including resettlement support, is available for up to two years after individuals have left the armed forces.
	The Ministry of Defence (MOD) appreciates that the mobile nature of Service life can create a particular difficulty for working partners who may have to give up their own jobs to accompany Service personnel on postings. The Armed Forces Covenant recognises that families should not face disadvantage compared to other citizens. Government measures taken to ensure this include working with Jobcentre Plus Armed Forces Champions to assist Service families find employment, and changes to rules for accessing Jobcentre Plus benefits and services.
	As part of the New Employment Model, the MOD is looking to improve support for domestic stability and partners' employment. In April 2013, the MOD started a two-year partner employment project to better understand the issues surrounding partner employment and to develop proposals to support it. We continue to work closely with the Families Federations and others to ensure partner employment initiatives are appropriate and make a real difference to the spouses of Service personnel.

Armed Forces: Training

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many trainee soldiers who enlisted in financial year 2012-13 at (a) Army Foundation College (Harrogate) and (b) Infantry Training Centre (Catterick) subsequently dropped out before the completion of phase two training.

Anna Soubry: Information relating to the number of soldiers who commenced training at the Army Foundation College Harrogate and the Infantry Training Centre Catterick in financial year (FY) 2012-13, but who were subsequently discharged or withdrew before the completion of Phase two training, is shown in the following table. It should be noted that some soldiers who enlisted during FY 2012-13 are still undertaking training.
	Individuals may withdraw or be discharged for a number of reasons, including medical and fitness factors, disciplinary reasons, or voluntary withdrawal. Personnel under 18 have a statutory right to discharge from the armed forces if they wish to leave.
	
		
			 Training establishment Enlisted FY 2012-13 Discharged/withdrew FY 2012-13 
			 Army Foundation College 1,360 270 
			 Infantry Training Centre 3,290 900 
			 Note: Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Armed Forces: Young People

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many applicants to the Army were aged (a) 17, (b) 16 and (c) under 16 years of age at the time of submitting their application in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry: The information requested is shown in the following table. It should be noted that the minimum age of enlistment for the Army is 16 years of age. Applications for the Regular Army are only accepted from those under 16 who are at least 15 years and nine months old.
	
		
			  Age on application 
			  17 16 Under 16 
			  Officer Soldier Officer Soldier Officer Soldier 
			 2008-09 970 13,740 1,040 15,190 1,140 7,000 
			 2009-10 810 9,500 900 10,530 940 5,250 
			 2010-11 880 9,370 930 10,750 880 5,540 
			 2011-12 1,000 9,610 1,040 10,680 990 5,360 
			 2012-13 440 5,710 510 6,480 700 3,370 
			 Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in “five” have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. 2. The information provided relates to age at the point of application rather than on enlistment.

Defence Support Group

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department is making with the sale of the Defence Support Group; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: We launched the formal sale process before Christmas 2013 and initial expressions of interest are positive. My intent is to complete the sale of the Defence Support Group (DSG) Land Business in financial year 2014-15.
	DSG provides maintenance and engineering support to vehicles used by the Army. The sale of DSG is not a new concept—it is entirely analogous to the support arrangements that have successfully been in place for the air and maritime domains for a number of years.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out his Department’s priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work programme; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Murrison: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Iran

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 17 January 2014, Official Report, column 696W, when he or officials of his Department last discussed with Iranian officials or their legal representatives the Court of Arbitration's ruling in the case of International Military Services Ltd v. Iran.

Philip Dunne: Officials have not been party to the various negotiations that have taken place in the case of International Military Sales Ltd v. Iran. The case is a matter for the company.

Land

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on ensuring that the disposal of the military estate results in maximum benefit to local communities.

Andrew Murrison: Ministry of Defence (MOD) Ministers hold regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a range of matters, including the sale of surplus MOD property, in support of the Government’s housing target and other initiatives.

Navy: Greenock

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department has taken to sell the former Coastguard building in Greenock; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Murrison: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 112W.

Oil and Pipelines Agency

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department is making with the sale of the Oil and Pipelines Agency; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: The Government has included clauses within the Energy Act to enable the sale of the Government Pipeline and Storage System (GPSS) which is managed on behalf of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) by the Oil and Pipelines Agency. Preparation for the sale of the GPSS has been conducted in parallel with the legislation but some areas of work are still ongoing.
	A final decision on the sale has not yet been made. MOD officials are developing the case for sale alongside colleagues from Her Majesty's Treasury, the Department for Energy and Climate Change, the Department for Transport and the Cabinet Office.

Reserve Forces: National Insurance Contributions

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 23 January 2014, Official Report, column 306W, on reserve forces: national insurance contributions, if he will make it his policy to pay the national insurance contributions for the two week period of a reservist's annual battle camp.

Anna Soubry: When Reservists are carrying out any period of training they are paid by the Ministry of Defence, who make the relevant employer's national insurance contributions in respect of those payments.

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library all assessments of new policy and legislation from his Department since January 2013 which give due consideration to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Anna Soubry: Since January 2013, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has amended Code C of the Service Police Codes of Practice in October 2013 to mirror changes to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act Codes of Practice. These amendments were made to comply with the divisional court judgment concerning safeguards for 17-year-olds which was itself reached by the reading of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights in conjunction with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. These changes are detailed in the MOD's Joint Service Publication 397— Service Police Codes of Practice. A copy of this document is available in the Library of the House.
	In addition to the comprehensive welfare system that is in place for all service personnel, MOD policies on under 18s are robust and compliant with both national and international law.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Advertising

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what budget his Department has allocated to spend on advertising (a) the under-occupancy penalty and (b) universal credit in the current financial year.

Michael Penning: The Department has allocated £170,000 for public information to explain the removal of the spare room subsidy so the public understand the changes, including options and support that is available. We have a duty to help the public understand and manage new legal changes and rights, and we ensure that we deliver value for money with these communications.
	We have not conducted any paid-for advertising in the universal credit live service areas but have used other value for money ways to ensure potential claimants are informed and prepared. This includes free media, leaflets, and working with local partners to provide accurate information directly to potential claimants. Our approach is proportionate and carefully targeted, reflecting the safe and responsible way that universal credit is being progressively rolled-out.

Advertising

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on advertising in each year since 2010.

Michael Penning: The Department's spend on marketing and media communication services such as digital advertising, press, radio and TV services in each year since 2010 is detailed as follows.
	
		
			  £ 
			 2009-10 5,095,971 
			 2010-11 989,154 
			 2011-12 1,506,161 
			 2012-13 4,811,303 
			 2013-14 3,835,245 
		
	
	Like all Government Departments and public bodies, we have a duty to help the public understand and manage new legal changes and rights, helping them get back in to work or save for retirement. We are delivering major reforms to the pensions and welfare systems with levels of spend underlining our commitment to provide essential public information at the appropriate time. We are careful to ensure we deliver value for money with these communications delivering significant benefits for individuals and wider society in understanding vital changes.

Advertising

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on advertising the introduction of the under-occupancy penalty.

Michael Penning: The Department spent £79,245 (ex VAT) in 2012-13 to provide accurate information to tenants and those supporting them about the removal of the spare room subsidy. The Department worked with local authorities and other stakeholders to deliver a package of targeted and proportionate value for money activity, meeting our essential responsibility to inform tenants of the changes.
	Like all Government Departments and public bodies, we have a duty to help the public understand and manage new legal changes and rights. We are careful to ensure we deliver value for money with this public information delivering significant benefits for individuals and wider society in understanding vital change.

Carer’s Allowance

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect on the number of people claiming carers' allowance of a rise in the minimum wage; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Penning: The earnings rule in carer's allowance allows carers to maintain links with the workplace by allowing recipients to work and earn up to £100 per week, net of allowable expenses. This means that some carers can earn in excess of the limit and still be entitled to carer's allowance.
	The increase in the national minimum wage will only affect those carers who claim carer's allowance, work 16 hours a week and do not have allowable expenses to take them below the earnings limit. In these circumstances a carer who is also receiving working tax credit will have any loss of carer's allowance offset by an increase in working tax credit.
	The Department does not hold information on the earnings of carer's allowance claimants—therefore it is difficult to identify the number of people who work 16 hours at the minimum wage. However, the conditions of entitlement are not linked to the number of hours a carer works but to the amount they are allowed to earn.

Children: Poverty

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children are living in poverty in Birmingham to the smallest area for which figures are available.

Esther McVey: The information requested is not available.
	The Child Poverty Act 2010 sets four income-based UK-wide targets to be met by 2020. The targets are based on the proportion of children living in households with relative low income, combined low income and material deprivation, absolute low income and persistent poverty (all before housing costs have been taken into account).
	Estimates of these are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or ‘equivalised’) for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living. This information is captured using the Family Resources Survey.
	Information at authority level is not available as the sample size of this survey is not sufficient to provide robust estimates. The lowest geography at which poverty estimates are reported is regional level.
	Three-year averages are used to report statistics by region, as single-year estimates are subject to volatility. The latest figures for relative and absolute low income at regional level covering the period of 2009-10 to 2011-12 can be found in the latest HBAI publication, available at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/households-below-average-income-hbai-199495-to-201112
	(ISBN 978-1-78153-531-8)
	Relevant regional figures can be found in Table 4.17ts (on page 136) for relative low income and Table 4.23ts (on page 142) for absolute low income.
	We have consulted on developing better measures of child poverty, which include, but go beyond income to provide a more accurate picture of the reality of child poverty and drive the right action. The complexity of the issue means that we need to take time to ensure we have the best option for measuring child poverty. We will publish our response as soon as we can.

Consultants

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on public relations and communications consultants in each year since 2010.

Michael Penning: The DWP has spent the following on consultants:
	
		
			  Spend on consultants (£) 
			 2009-10 2,178,933 
			 2010-11 94,106 
		
	
	As a result of spending controls put in place in 2011 there have been no further costs incurred.

Council Tax Benefits: Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Warrington North constituency have been living in the same property since 1996 and in receipt of council tax benefit or a successor benefit during that time; and what estimate he has made of the number of such people who have (a) received transitional support, (b) erroneously had their benefit cancelled and (c) moved home following erroneous deductions from their benefit.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	Information on local council tax reduction schemes, which replaced council tax benefit in April 2013, is not held centrally.

Disability Living Allowance

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were in receipt of disability living allowance in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK in the latest period for which figures are available.

Michael Penning: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Disability living allowance recipients: May 2013 
			  Total 
			 Great Britain/abroad 3,305,200 
			 North East region 181,870 
			 South Tyneside local authority 11,400 
			 Jarrow parliamentary constituency 6,160 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and excludes cases where the payment has been suspended eg if they are in hospital. 3. Great Britain data has been provided as the information for Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Department for Social Development. Northern Ireland statistics and can be found at: http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/stats_and_research/benefit_publications.htm Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate, 100% Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study.

Employment and Support Allowance

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 23 January 2014, Official Report, column 264W, on employment and support allowance (ESA), if he will confirm whether it is correct that his Department does not keep precise records of assessments carried out by companies such as Atos but instead relies on a representative sample; whether the sample of ESA cases is provided by Atos or selected by his Department; and what steps he takes to ensure that this sample is accurate and representative.

Michael Penning: The Department receives reviews and keeps a copy of every report prepared by Atos Healthcare. In addition, Atos Healthcare is required to undertake a comprehensive audit of the work of their health care professionals. This audit includes a randomly selected monthly national sample which is used to report against their contractual quality target. A random sample of those cases are then subject to further checking by the Department.

Employment and Support Allowance

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department takes to ensure that people who stop claiming employment and support allowance are removed from the system to prevent the public purse being charged for fraudulent appointments.

Esther McVey: Operational guidance is in place to ensure that where an award of employment and support allowance is terminated any work capability assessment referral that has been made to the assessment provider is withdrawn.

Employment and Support Allowance

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have been affected by his Department's decision to time-limit contributory employment and support allowance (ESA) to one year; how many claimants are entitled to means tested ESA after their entitlement to contributory ESA has expired; and how much his Department expects to save by time-limiting contributory ESA to one year.

Esther McVey: Statistics on employment and support allowance (ESA) off-flows by payment type and duration of the claim can be found at:
	http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/100pc/tabtool.html
	Guidance for users is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance
	In 2012-13 around 69,000 claimants were entitled to means tested ESA within a month of their entitlement to contributory ESA expiring, compared to 82,000 who were not. However, 2012-13 data include a number of cases who had been in receipt of contributory ESA for 12 months or more at the point the change was introduced. This estimate is based on the Generalised Matching Service, which is a departmental data capture tool. The data have not been fully quality-assured. This type of information does not form part of the regular official statistics outputs that are released by the Department in accordance with the UK Statistics Authority's code of practice.
	Our estimate, at Budget 2012, is that time-limiting ESA in Great Britain would result in spending £350 million less in 2012-13 and £875 million less this year.
	Welfare policy costings are generally based on administrative, accounting and survey data, and assumptions about how a new policy might change expenditure. They are scrutinised by the Office for Budget Responsibility, and explained in HM Treasury's policy costings publications when they are announced.
	By necessity, these publications also cover areas of uncertainty. Isolating the impact of any policy change becomes increasingly uncertain as new policy beds into the benefits system, and becomes the norm. Consequently policy costings are not necessarily revised after the date of implementation. Where revisions are made, savings or costs may go up or down.

Employment Schemes: Kingston upon Hull

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many employers in Kingston-upon-Hull have applied for wage subsidies under the Youth Contract scheme to date;
	(2)  how many jobseekers in Kingston-upon-Hull have been supported by wage subsidies under the Youth Contract scheme to date.

Esther McVey: Information on Wage Incentive applications and payments, broken down by geography, is currently not available. We plan to further develop the data in the future, as part of an Official Statistics series.
	The next national Wage Incentive experimental statistics are due to be released later this month.

Employment Schemes: Young People

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his most recent assessment is of the effectiveness of the Youth Contract.

Esther McVey: The Government’s approach is working. For the 19th consecutive month, we have seen the youth claimant count reduce.
	The Youth Contract is successfully providing young people with the support they require, building on support already available via jobcentres and the Work programme. We are providing young people with the support needed including work experience, sector-based work academies and apprenticeships.

Employment Schemes: Young People

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employers (a) in the adult entertainment industry and (b) possessing a sexual entertainment venue licence have applied for wage subsidies under the Youth Contract scheme to date.

Esther McVey: This information is not available.
	Wage Incentive guidance is clear that only legal and legitimate jobs are in scope.

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over their 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: I refer to the reply given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) on 29 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Financial Services

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when (a) Ministers and (b) officials his Department have met (i) Axa, (ii) Aviva, (iii) Friends Life, (iv) Scottish Life, (v) Scottish Widows, (vi) Legal and General, (vii) Aegon and (vii) Standard Life in the last four months; and for what purpose.

Steve Webb: The information is as follows:
	(a) Details of meetings with external organisations held by DWP Ministers are published quarterly, three months in arrears, on gov.uk as part of this Government’s transparency drive. Information relating to October to December 2013 is due to be published in April 2014.
	(b) Department for Work and Pensions officials have not met Axa in the last four months. In the last four months, officials have met representatives from Aviva three times, representatives from Friends Life twice, representatives from Scottish Life three times, representatives from Scottish Widows four times, representatives from Legal and General six times, representatives from Aegon three times and representatives from Standard Life six times.
	Additionally, in the last four months, officials have met with representatives from the NAPF, the CBI, Which?, Age UK and the TUC around 20 times.
	Discussions have covered defined contribution quality; automatic transfers; commission; proposals outlined in the consultation on charging and decumulation.
	Officials have regular telephone conversations with a range of providers, including some of the above, to discuss automatic enrolment capacity planning.
	The above lists are not exhaustive, as officials also have contact with stakeholders through working groups, roundtables, open workshops and other collective forums.

Health and Safety Executive

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much income the Health and Safety Executive earned from commercial sources in each of the last 10 years.

Michael Penning: The requested information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Total income (£ million) 
			 2004-05 53.3 
			 2005-06 55.7 
			 2006-07 54.1 
			 2007-08 61.3 
			 2008-09 87.0 
			 2009-10 99.9 
			 2010-11 115.8 
			 2011-12 108.2 
			 2012-13 109.0 
			 2013-14 (YTD) 84.6

Helmets: Sikhs

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to extend to industrial premises the exemption for Sikhs from requirements to wear safety helmets on construction sites.

Michael Penning: As the law currently stands, turban-wearing Sikhs are exempt from wearing head protection in a high hazard industry, construction, but may be required to wear it in lower hazard workplaces.
	I am seeking to table an amendment to the De-regulation Bill, which is currently before Parliament, to extend this exemption to all workplaces, including industrial premises. The amendment will also extend the limitation on liability for employers to any work situation where a turban-wearing Sikh chooses not to wear head protection. There may be very limited exceptions, such as for specific roles in the emergency services or armed forces. The Health and Safety Executive is currently consulting on the proposals.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of social housing tenants affected by the implementation of the under occupancy penalty in wheelchair standard properties have been given exempt status.

Esther McVey: Working-age social sector tenants are not exempt from the removal of the spare room subsidy.
	£180 million has been allocated to the discretionary housing payment scheme to help vulnerable people, of which £25 million has been specifically added to help those living in significantly adapted accommodation;
	Discretionary housing payment data published in December indicate that local authorities are supporting people in significantly adapted homes as intended.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of social housing tenants affected by the implementation of the under occupancy penalty have downsized to a smaller property.

Esther McVey: The information is not available.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of disabled social housing tenants affected by the implementation of the under occupancy penalty have downsized to a smaller property.

Esther McVey: The information is not available.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has allocated in discretionary housing payments to cover the effects of the implementation of the under occupancy penalty on social housing tenants.

Esther McVey: In 2013-14 the Government contribution to discretionary housing payments was increased to £180 million.
	In 2014-15 the government will continue to support those affected by the removal of the spare room subsidy. With a total government contribution to discretionary housing payments of £165 million.
	DWP also provided local authorities with £4 million in 2012-13 and a further £7.5 million in 2013-14 for the administrative costs associated with the implementation of the removal of the spare room subsidy.
	In addition, in July 2013 the Government provided £10 million in new in-year transitional funding for local authorities to help support housing benefit claimants to adjust to the removal of the spare room subsidy.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of social housing tenants affected by the implementation of the under occupancy penalty live in wheelchair-standard properties.

Esther McVey: This information is not available.
	However, £25 million has been specifically added to the Discretionary Housing Payment fund to help those living in significantly adapted properties.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make an assessment of the potential effects of the under-occupancy penalty on the level of child poverty in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Jobcentre Plus

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he has taken to ensure there is sufficient capacity in Jobcentre Plus to process individuals returning after completion of the Work Programme.

Esther McVey: DWP have plans in place to deliver the necessary support for individuals returning from the Work programme. This includes the staff resource to deliver the additional interventions and adjustments to Jobcentres to cope with additional claimant activity.

Jobcentre Plus: Heywood

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints about (a) staff behaviour, (b) contested sanction decisions and (c) telephone line waiting times have been made by residents of Heywood and Middleton constituency about local Jobcentre Plus offices in each year since 2010.

Esther McVey: As complaints are not recorded by constituency, this level of data is not available. No data are held regarding contested sanction decisions.
	It is possible to provide the following information recorded by the North West Working Age Complaints Resolution Team regarding the number of complaints received regarding staff behaviour since July 2012 (when the team was established) for Heywood and Middleton Jobcentres as follows:
	Heywood JC—five complaints received regarding staff behaviour of which three raised by Jim Dobbin MP. (four complaints not upheld and one complaint partially upheld).
	Middleton JC—eight complaints received regarding staff behaviour of which one raised by Jim Dobbin MP. (six complaints not upheld and two complaints partially upheld).

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will assess whether jobseeker's allowance claimants who are sanctioned are more likely to find employment afterwards.

Esther McVey: Claimant surveys have found that conditionality backed by sanctions has a positive impact on job-search behaviour. 63% of JSA claimants said that awareness that their benefit could be stopped if they did not comply with certain rules increased their likelihood to look for work or take steps to prepare for work.

Land

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which sites owned by his Department are currently earmarked for disposal; what the current class use is of each site; what the expected planning use is for each site; whether each site already has planning permission for the expected planning use; what the market value of the site is; and whether the site will be sold for the full market value.

Michael Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 514W.

National Insurance Fund

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his policy is on the (a) appropriate level of balance in the National Insurance Fund and (b) appropriate level of reserve for that fund.

David Gauke: I have been asked to reply 
	on behalf of the Treasury.
	The appropriate level of the balance of the National Insurance Fund (NIF) is recommended by the Government Actuary. The NIF has no borrowing powers and so historically the Government Actuary has recommended a balance for the NIF of at least 16.6% (two months or one sixth) of projected benefit expenditure to ensure that the NIF maintains a working balance and can deal with short term fluctuations.
	When necessary, additional funding in the form of a Treasury Grant from the Consolidated Fund can be made to the NIF. The maximum Treasury Grant that can be made available in any one tax year is set by primary legislation at 17% of the National Insurance Fund's annual benefit expenditure.
	The balance of the NIF on (a) the 31 May 2013 was £28.48 billion and (b) on 31 December 2013 was £21.39 billion. This reply assumes that ‘accumulated surplus’ refers to the balance in the NIF at the dates stated.

Pension Credit

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the number of pensioners who receive pension credit in (a) Scottish parliamentary constituencies, (b) Fife region, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK; and what the cost to the public purse is of that provision for each category;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of providing pension credit in each of the last five financial years;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the likely cost to the public purse of providing pension credit in (a) Scotland, (b) Northern Ireland, (c) England and (d) Wales in the current financial year;
	(4)  what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of pension credit since it was introduced.

Steve Webb: The cost to the public purse of providing pension credit in each of the last five years, and the total cost since introduction, can be found in the following published table:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/273833/outturn-and-forecast-expenditure-201213.xls
	Estimates of expenditure for the current financial year are based on forecasts, as outturn is only available for part of the year. Forecasts are only available at a national (GB) level and we do not provide details for current year forecasts that are not published.
	The cost to the public purse for receipt in Scottish parliamentary constituencies and Scotland are in the following table:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/266825/pc-tables-201213.xls
	and the cost to the public purse for provision in Fife local authority can be found in the following table:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/266828/la-tables-201213.xls
	The number of pensioners who receive pension credit in Scottish parliamentary constituencies, the Fife local authority, and Scotland are available from the Tabulation Tool here:
	http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/100pc/pc/tabtool_pc.html
	Information for Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Department for Social Development. Northern Ireland statistics can be found at:
	http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/stats_and_research/benefit_publications.htm

Personal Independence Payment

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of Capita's performance as a personal independence payment assessment provider; and what steps he takes to monitor their performance.

Michael Penning: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 January 2014, Official Report, column 58-59W, to the hon. Member for Edinburgh East (Sheila Gilmore).

Personal Independence Payment

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) average and (b) longest time is between a personal independent payments assessment provider having a face to face consultation with a claimant and passing their assessment report to his Department.

Michael Penning: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 164W, to the hon. Member for Dudley North (Ian Austin).

Personal Independence Payment

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions under what conditions new personal independence payment claimants are granted a home assessment.

Michael Penning: The Department for Work and Pensions has set out the minimum requirements for providers as to when a home consultation should be offered—in particular where the claimant is unable to travel to a consultation as a result of their health conditions or impairments.
	The contract between DWP and providers sets out the circumstances in which face-to-face consultations will take place in the claimant's home. These are:
	at the claimant's request, if the assessor agrees that their health condition or disability means they are unable to travel;
	when the claimant provides confirmation, through the professional providing evidence to support their claim, that indicates they are unable to travel on health grounds; or
	at the DWP's request, although these will be exceptional circumstances.

Personal Independence Payment

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many new personal independence payment (PIP) claims have been made since the inception of PIP; and how many such claims were (a) assessed at an assessment centre, (b) assessed at home and (c) have not yet been assessed following a claim made more than six months ago;
	(2)  what the average time personal independence payment claimants (a) able to travel to an assessment centre and (b) awaiting a home assessment have to wait to be given an assessment date is.

Michael Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Dudley North (Ian Austin) on 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 164W.

Personal Independence Payment

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Coventry South of 6 January 2014, Official Report, column 57W, on personal independence payment, if he will make it his policy to collect data on how many complaints personal independence payment assessment providers receive.

Michael Penning: DWP has invested a significant amount of effort to improving its complaint resolution processes and procedures.
	The Department requires providers to have an appropriate complaints process in place and to be responsible for the quality of their complaint handling. Providers also have to report on claimant satisfaction as part of the contract.
	Claimants are directed to raise complaints directly with the provider. If the claimant remains dissatisfied after completing the provider's complaints process they will be able to escalate their complaint directly to the Independent Case Examiner's service (ICE). The ICE will investigate a complaint against a provider in the same way as that of any other DWP business and report on performance annually.
	If the claimant is unhappy with the service that they have received from both DWP and the provider, DWP will take ownership of the complaint. DWP collects data on these complaints.

Personal Independence Payment

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Edinburgh East of 9 December 2013, Official Report, columns 45-6W, on personal independence payment, what data his Department plans to release in early 2014; and when such data will be released.

Michael Penning: The personal independence payment (PIP) release strategy explains how DWP will manage the release of statistics and related information on PIP:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-release-strategy

Personal Independence Payment

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what target or limit is set as the maximum time a new claimant for personal independence payment must wait to receive an assessment date.

Michael Penning: As you will appreciate, personal independence payment (PIP) is a new benefit and processes are currently bedding in. There are no statutory (legal) requirements to complete action on a claim to PIP within a specified time. Clearly, we want to minimise the length of time claimants have to wait for assessments but the key requirement is to produce high quality assessments, to enable DWP decision makers to make the right decisions about benefit entitlement.

Personal Independence Payment

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what target or limit is set on the maximum distance a new claimant of personal independence payment must travel to an assessment centre.

Michael Penning: Claimants will travel no more than 90 minutes (single journey) by public transport to their personal independence payment consultation and in most cases far less than that.

Personal Independence Payment

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people in receipt of personal independence payment are not receiving their benefit payments;
	(2)  how many claims for personal independence payments are outstanding for each of the last three years.

Michael Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Dudley North (Ian Austin) on 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 164W.
	Please note that personal independence payment new claims have not yet been running for a whole year.

Personal Independence Payment

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the causes of delays in the delivery of personal independence payments.

Michael Penning: As you will appreciate, personal independence payment (PIP) is a new benefit and processes are currently bedding in. There are no statutory (legal) requirements to complete action on a claim to PIP within a specified time; however, we are committed to ensuring PIP claimants receive high quality, objective, fair and accurate assessments.
	Our latest analysis is telling us that the end-to-end claimant journey is taking longer than expected. We are working with the assessment providers to address this. The most important thing is to ensure assessments are of high quality.

Personal Independence Payment

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many personal independence payment (PIP) claims (a) have been made, (b) received assessments and (c) been awarded to date; and what the (i) average and (ii) longest time it has taken for a claimant to receive a decision from when the claim was first made in (A) Wales and (B) Newport East constituency.

Michael Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Dudley North (Ian Austin) on 21 January 2014, Official Report, column 164W.

Poverty

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of (a) children, (b) pensioners and (c) households were living in poverty in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) the North East and (iv) the UK in each year since 2002.

Esther McVey: Not all of the information requested is available.
	Estimates of children and pensioners in low income households are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living. This information is captured using the Family Resources Survey.
	The latest figures for children and pensioners in relative low income, absolute low income, persistent low income and combined low income and material deprivation for children can be found in the latest HBAI publication, available at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/households-below-average-income-hbai-199495-to-201112
	(ISBN 978-1-78153-531-8).
	Information at constituency or local authority level is not available as the sample size of the Family Resources Survey is not sufficient to provide robust estimates. The lowest geography at which poverty estimates are reported is regional level.
	Figures on the number and proportion of children, pensioners and households in relative low income for the UK from 2002/03 to 2011/12 are provided in Table 1 as follows.
	Three-year averages are used to report statistics by region, as single-year estimates are subject to volatility. As such figures on the number and proportion of children, pensioners and households in relative low income for the North East covering the periods of 2002/03-2004/05 to 2009/10-2011/12 are provided in Table 2 as follows.
	
		
			 Table 1: Population (million) and proportion of children (Before Housing Costs), pensioners (After Housing Costs) and households (Before Housing Costs) in relative low income, UK, 2002/03 to2011/12 
			  Children (Before Housing Costs) Pensioners (After Housing Costs) Households (Before Housing Costs) 
			  Number (million) Percentage Number (million) Percentage Number (million) Percentage 
			 2002/03 2.9 23 2.5 24 4.9 19 
			 2003/04 2.9 22 2.2 21 4.9 19 
			 2004/05 2.7 21 1.9 18 4.6 18 
			 2005/06 2.8 22 1.8 17 4.7 18 
			 2006/07 2.9 22 2.1 19 5.0 19 
			 2007/08 2.9 23 2.0 18 5.1 19 
			 2008/09 2.8 22 1.8 16 5.0 19 
			 2009/10 2.6 20 1.8 15 4.8 18 
			 2010/11 2.3 18 1.7 14 4.7 17 
			 2011/12 2.3 17 1.6 14 4.7 17 
			 Source: HBAI 2002/03-2011/12 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Population (million) and proportion of children (Before Housing Costs), pensioners (After Housing Costs) and households (Before Housing Costs) in relative low income in the North East, three year averages 2002/03-2004/05 to 2009/10-2011/12 
			  Children (Before Housing Costs) Pensioners (After Housing Costs) Households (Before Housing Costs) 
			  Number (million) Percentage Number (million) Percentage Number (million) Percentage 
			 2002/03-2004/05 0.2 31 0.1 20 0.2 23 
			 2003/04-2005/06 0.2 28 0.1 17 0.2 21 
			 2004/05-2006/07 0.2 28 0.1 17 0.2 21 
			 2005/06-2007/08 0.1 28 0.1 19 0.2 22 
			 2006/07-2008/09 0.1 28 0.1 18 0.3 23 
			 2007/08-2009/10 0.1 27 0.1 17 0.3 22 
			 2008/09-2010/11 0.1 25 0.1 14 0.2 20 
		
	
	
		
			 2009/10-2011/12 0.1 21 0.1 13 0.2 20 
			 Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data sourced from the 2011/12 Family Resources Survey (FRS). This uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 2. Net disposable incomes have been used to answer this question. This includes earnings from employment and self/employment, state support, income from occupational and private pensions, investment income and other sources. Income tax payments, national insurance contributions, council tax/domestic rates and some other payments are deducted from incomes. 3. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 and percentages to the nearest whole percentage point. 4. Figures have been presented on a Before Housing Cost and an After Housing Cost basis. For Before Housing Costs, housing costs are not deducted from income, while for After Housing Costs they are. 5. When considering the living standards of children, measures after housing costs can underestimate the true standard of living as a family may make a choice to spend more on rent or mortgage to attain a higher standard of accommodation. 6. Conversely measures for pensioners are generally on an After Housing Costs basis. This is because pensioners are far more likely to own their homes outright and so receive value from housing, without having to pay for rent or mortgage payments out of their current income. So for assessing pensioner poverty a before housing costs basis does not provide a good comparison of living standards. 7. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non/response. 8. The reference period for HBAI figures is the financial year. For regional figures three year averages have been used to overcome volatility. 9. In Households Below Average Income, a household is defined as a single person or group of people living at the same address as their only or main residence, who either share one meal together or share the living accommodation. This differs from a benefit unit (family), which is defined as a single adult or a married or cohabiting couple, plus any dependent children. From January 2006 same/sex partners (civil partners and cohabitees) are also included in the same benefit unit. A household will consist of one or more benefit units. The figures above are based on households. Source: HBAI 2002/03-2011/12

Social Security Benefits

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what future plans he has for reducing spending on working-age benefits.

Esther McVey: The Government’s latest forecast of future spending plans, including forecasts for working-age benefits and the impact of reform measures announced, was published at the autumn statement on 5 December 2013, Official Report, columns 1101-13.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance his Department has issued to Job Centre Plus staff on targets for the number of sanctions placed on jobseekers; and if he will place in the Library a copy of any such guidance.

Esther McVey: We have no targets for the number of sanctions placed on jobseekers.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many benefit claimants have been sanctioned at any one time in the (a) last month, (b) three months, (c) six months and (d) year; and if he will publish the unemployment figures for the (i) last month, (ii) three months, (iii) six months and (iv) year if people on sanctions were included in the figures.

Esther McVey: The information we have is shown in the following table and is for jobseeker’s allowance claimants with a sanction applied.
	
		
			 Number of individuals with a JSA adverse sanction decision by time period, Great Britain, 22 October 2012 to 30 June 2013 
			 Time period of decision Number of individuals with a JSA sanction applied during the period 
			 October 2012 25,610 
			 November 2012 65,250 
			 December 2012 52,380 
			 January 2013 65,430 
			 February 2013 51,570 
			 March 2013 56,490 
			 April 2013 64,010 
			 May 2013 66,640 
			 June 2013 61,020 
			 22 October 2012 to 30 June 2013 397,180 
			 Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and will include individuals who have had a sanction applied for more than one period e.g. if an individual had a sanction applied in October 2012 and in June 2013 then they will appear in both of these periods therefore totals may not sum. 2. The number of sanctions applied is the number of sanction referrals where the decision was found against the claimant. 3. Time period of decision: The time period in which the decision on the sanction referral was made. The October 2012 figure only includes data from 22 October 2012 and data is shown to 30 June 2013, which this is the latest data available. New regulations introduced a revised sanctions regime for JSA claimants from 22 October 2012. Details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/jobseekers-allowance-overview-of-sanctions-rules JSA sanctions statistics are published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/jobseekers-allowance-and-employment-and-support-allowance-sanctions-decisions-made-to-june-2013 Statistics on the claimant count and unemployment are published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk Source: DWP Information, Governance and Security Directorate: JSA Sanctions and Disallowance Decisions Statistics Database. 
		
	
	The claimant count includes all cases of claimants who are serving sanctions, provided the claimant continues to keep their claim live during the sanction period, by keeping in contact with Jobcentre Plus through the normal signing on process. If a claimant chooses to not keep their claim live during a sanction period, the claim is no longer live and they would not be included. There is no way of identifying whether those individuals who are subject to sanction, but do not maintain contact with Jobcentre Plus are doing so because of the sanction or some other reason.

Social Security Benefits: Lone Parents

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) working and (b) non- working single parents are in receipt of benefits in Birmingham to the smallest area for which figures are available.

Esther McVey: Information as requested is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Training

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department spent on communications and media training for (a) Ministers and (b) senior civil servants in each year since 2010.

Michael Penning: In 2010-11 the Department spent £3,525 on media training for Ministers. We do not hold data on the number of senior civil servants that received training in this year.
	From 2011 media training has been delivered through Civil Service Training and we do not hold data breaking down attendees into further categories.

Universal Credit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the effects on (a) Exchequer receipts and (b) individual incomes of eligibility for universal credit being established using gross rather than net income with disregards and the taper rate maintained at the levels currently proposes.

Esther McVey: Using gross earnings to calculate the universal credit award would fundamentally undermine the objectives of universal credit as it would lead to a substantial reduction in the financial incentives to work. In steady state such a change would reduce the benefit entitlements of around 2.6 million households on universal credit. The Department would not recommend such a policy change.
	Calculating the universal credit award based on gross income would reduce Government expenditure and individuals’ income by around £3 billion per annum once universal credit is fully rolled out. This assumes that the existing taper and work allowances are maintained. The estimated financial impact does not take account of the expected adverse effect on work incentives.
	The reduction in expenditure is driven by higher earnings being taken into account, reducing households’ universal credit award.

Universal Credit

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether any provision has been made to transfer funds between the DEL and AME allocations for universal credit within his Department's overall allocation.

Esther McVey: The original allocation for universal credit (UC), at the spending review in 2010, allocated £2 billion to the running costs of UC, and a limit of £2.5 billion additional AME funding. At autumn statement 5 December 2012, Official Report, columns 871-882, universal credit AME expenditure moved into the Department's baseline AME forecasts, alongside all our other benefits. There are currently no plans to transfer any further funds between AME and DEL in any one financial year.

Universal Credit

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total DEL budget allocated to the development, implementation and running of the Universal Credit programme was in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14, (e) 2014-15, (f) 2015-16, (g) 2016-17, (h) 2017-18 and (i) total.

Esther McVey: Universal credit programme was allocated a budget totalling £2 billion as part of the Department’s spending review 2010 settlement covering the period from 2011-12 through end of 2014-15.
	Of the £2 billion budget, spend in 2011-12 was 5%, and in 2012-13 16%. Current forecast spend for 2013-14 is £192 million.
	Budgets for 2014-15 and 2015-16 are subject to ongoing programme planning.
	Budgets for years beyond 2015-16 are subject to future spending review discussions.

Vacancies: Internet

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many complaints have been received by (a) Jobcentre Plus and (b) his Department over Universal Jobmatch; and what the reasons were for each complaint;
	(2)  what provisions his Department has put in place to monitor the maintenance of Universal Jobmatch by Monster;
	(3)  how many claimants referred to Universal Jobmatch have entered employment for (a) less than one month, (b) between one and three months, (c) between three and six months and (d) more than six months to date.

Esther McVey: Universal Jobmatch is part of the Government's plan for providing easy online access to Government services for all and is one of the services we use to help claimants back into work.
	We are unable to produce data for the number of claimants referred to Universal Jobmatch, who have entered employment. However, we know that the majority of JSA claimants are now registered on UJ with an account and are applying for jobs using the service. Our most recent figures show the claimant count is 1.25 million, down 24,000 in December—the 14th consecutive fall, and nearly 250,000 below May 2010.
	The detailed complaints information you request is not collated to this level and to do so would incur disproportionate costs.
	Maintenance for Universal Jobmatch is the responsibility of Monster Worldwide Ltd. As per the terms and conditions of the contract, DWP hold a range of weekly and monthly meetings with Monster, at a number of levels, to monitor provision of the service.

Welfare State: Reform

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of regional variations in the cumulative impact of the Government's welfare reform programme; and if he will make a statement.

Esther McVey: The Government regularly produces analysis of the cumulative impact of all coalition changes, including welfare, on households across the income distribution. This information is produced by the Treasury and is published alongside every Budget and autumn statement, in the interests of transparency. The previous Government did not provide this type of analysis. The most recent update was published with the autumn statement on 5 December 2013, and can be found using the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/263548/impact_on_households_ autumn_statement_2013.pdf

Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many homeless people have been referred to the Work programme since June 2011; and how many of those people have secured a job outcome.

Esther McVey: Information on how many homeless people have been referred to the Work programme is not currently available, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	However, information on the number of Work programme referrals and job outcomes, by payment group, is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dwp-statistics-tabulation-tool
	Guidance for users is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Work Programme: Clackmannanshire

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what proportion of direct payments to sub-contractors of prime providers made by his Department under the Work Programme related to delivery of the Work Programme in Clackmannanshire;
	(2)  what proportion of direct payments to individual prime providers made by his Department under the Work Programme related to delivery of the Work Programme in Clackmannanshire.

Esther McVey: The total paid to Work programme providers in the UK is £1,047 million from the start of the programme through to 30 September 2013, the period covered by the December 2013 Statistical Release.
	Due to commercial in confidence considerations we are not able to release financial data below the national level at this time.
	The Work programme is payment by results. Not only does the Work programme support people into employment, it is also designed with the crucial aim of keeping them there. It encourages long-term private sector employment, not a short term fix. Providers are paid according to the results they deliver, not rewarded for failure.

Work Programme: Clackmannanshire

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints have been submitted to prime providers of the Work Programme in Clackmannanshire.

Esther McVey: From the start of the Work programme up to 29 January 2014 prime providers in Clackmannanshire have (through their subcontractor Triage) received 10 complaints.

Work Programme: Clackmannanshire

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what oversight his Department has of contracts between prime and sub contractors delivering the Work Programme in Clackmannanshire.

Esther McVey: Contracts between Work programme prime providers and their subcontractors are commercial matters between the parties concerned, and in which the Department has no direct involvement.
	However, to promote excellent supply chain management and fair treatment of subcontractors by prime providers, the Department worked with the welfare to work industry and representative bodies to develop the Merlin Standard. The Department requires all Work programme prime providers to achieve accreditation under the Merlin Standard, which involves independent scrutiny of the relationships between prime providers and their supply chain partners.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Early Day Motions

Andrew Bingham: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, what the cost of preparing, publishing and monitoring Early Day Motions has been in each year of this Parliament.

John Thurso: Costs relating to early day motions are calculated in terms of financial years
	
		
			 £ 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Printing 431,000 354,000 374,500 
			 IT support costs 169,000 12,000 3,500 
			 Estimated staffing costs 2— 2— 33,000 
		
	
	
		
			 Total n/a n/a 411,000 
			 1 £12,000 support contract, £57,000 technical support for database. 2 Staff costs have previously been estimated at £78,000 in 2010-11 and £81,000 in 2011-12; however, a review of the methodology used to calculate staff costs suggests that they were significant over-estimates. 
		
	
	The cost of early day motions has fallen considerably since the House ceased printing early day motions which had appeared in print for a full sitting week. A saving of approximately £355,000 was realised between 2009-10 and 2010-11.
	No costs are incurred in 'monitoring' early day motions, although a small cost will be incurred by the Department of Information Services, which adds subject tags to assist in finding early day motions online.
	The IT support costs do not include the cost of developing a new back-office system for early day motions (around £50,000), which accounts for the reduction in support costs for 2012-13.

JUSTICE

Alternatives to Prison: Cumbria

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people received community sentences in Barrow and Furness constituency in each category of offence in 2013.

Jeremy Wright: Statistics on the number of offenders sentenced to a community sentence in the calendar year 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
	Information available centrally does not allow a breakdown of cases by parliamentary constituency area.

Civil Proceedings: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many cases have been adjourned because a litigant in person in a private law case was not considered sufficiently prepared as directed by a judge in (a) Gwent civil and family and tribunals sub-cluster and (b) Wales civil and family tribunals cluster, since April 2013.

Shailesh Vara: An adjournment because a litigant in person was not considered sufficiently prepared would not be recorded on HMCTS's central case management system in a way the data could be collated. That level of information may be held on individual case files but even then may require some interpretation of the judge's directions. Manually checking every private law case file heard in Wales since April 2013 would incur disproportionate costs. HMCTS has produced a new leaflet, which complements a suite of online videos to assist litigants in person prepare for court proceedings.

Crime: Business

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will review the adequacy of current legislation on corporate criminal liability.

Damian Green: The Government has no specific plans to review the adequacy of the current legislation on corporate criminal liability, although this area, like all criminal law, is subject to general monitoring.

Curzon Institute

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent contact his Department has had with (a) Curzon Education and (b) the Curzon Institute; what contracts his Department holds with those bodies; and what the value of those contracts is.

Shailesh Vara: The Department does not hold any contracts with (a) Curzon Education and (b) Curzon Institute. The Department does not hold information centrally as to whether we have received contact with companies. We do not record or log telephone conversations and therefore can not confirm if there has been any contact by this medium. To determine if there has been any email correspondence the department would have to review every member of staff email accounts, this would be a disproportionate cost.

Driving Offences

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many holders of a foreign-issued driving licence were prosecuted for non-speeding road traffic offences in the last three years;
	(2)  how many holders of a foreign-issued driving licence were prosecuted for speeding offences in the last year;
	(3)  how many owners of foreign-registered vehicles have been prosecuted for failure to register their vehicles after remaining in the UK beyond six months in each of the last five years;
	(4)  how many holders of a foreign-issued driving licence were convicted of drink driving offences in each of the last five years.

Jeremy Wright: All drivers on our roads must abide by the same rules whether their vehicles are registered here or abroad. Failure to do so may lead to prosecution and conviction.
	The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales. This database holds information on offences provided by the statutes under which proceedings are brought but not the specific circumstances of each case. It is not possible to separately identify from this centrally held information whether, in all the cases for the offences listed which resulted in a prosecution or a conviction, the defendant was the holder of a foreign-issued driving licence or whether the vehicle involved in the committing of a criminal offence was foreign-registered. This detailed information may be held by the courts on individual case files which due to their size and complexity are not reported to Justice Analytical Services. As such, this information can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Driving Under Influence: Convictions

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many convictions there were for driving with excessive alcohol where a fatality or fatalities occurred in each of the last three years; and how many such convictions resulted in a non-custodial sentence;
	(2)  how many convictions there have been for death by careless driving whilst under the influence of drink or drugs in each of the last three years; and how many such convictions resulted in a non-custodial sentence;
	(3)  how many convictions there were for driving whilst unfit through drink or drugs where a fatality or fatalities occurred in each of the last three years; and how many such convictions resulted in a non-custodial sentence;
	(4)  how many convictions for causing death by dangerous driving whilst under the influence of alcohol in England and Wales there were in each of the last three years; and how many such convictions resulted in a non-custodial sentence;
	(5)  how many convictions for being drunk whilst in charge of a motor vehicle there were in respect of incidents where a fatality occurred in England and Wales in each of the last three years; and how many such convictions resulted in a non-custodial sentence.

Jeremy Wright: Parliament has made sure that significant penalties are available for those who cause death on the roads: the two most serious offences, of causing death by dangerous driving and causing death whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs, are both punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment. The court must also disqualify the offender from driving for at least two years (frequently longer) and order an extended retest.
	The number of offenders found guilty and sentenced for causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs in England and Wales, from 2008 to 2012, can be viewed in the table. The overwhelming majority of offenders who are convicted of causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs receive a custodial sentence.
	It is not possible to separately identify from centrally-held information whether or not any other findings of guilt for causing death by dangerous driving involved an offender who was found to have either excessive alcohol or drugs in their systems. This could only be obtained from the individual courts in England and Wales at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			 Defendants found guilty and sentenced at all courts for causing death by careless driving while under the influence of drink or drugs1, England and Wales, 2008-122,3 
			  20084 2009 2010 2011 2012 
			 Found guilty 46 35 41 35 23 
			 Sentenced 46 35 41 35 23 
			 Of which:      
			 Immediate custody 45 33 40 35 21 
			 Suspended sentence 1 2 1 — — 
			 Community sentence — — — — 1 
			 Fine — — — — 1 
		
	
	
		
			 Conditional discharge — — — — — 
			 Absolute discharge — — — — — 
			 Custody rate (%) 97.8 94.3 97.6 100.0 91.3 
			 Average custodial sentence length (in months) 46.6 51.9 45.5 52.3 52.1 
			 1 An offence under section 3A of the Road Traffic Act 1988, as added by section 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1991 and amended by section 6 of the Criminal Justice Act 1993. 2 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 3 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 4 Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. 5 Excludes life and indeterminate sentences. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 20 January 2014, Official Report, column 26W, on Freedom of Information Act 2000, if he will set a timetable for a decision on extending the scope of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 to cover all examination boards.

Simon Hughes: We remain committed to the extension of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in line with the coalition agreement, and have extended it to more than 100 additional bodies since May 2010. Any further extension of FOIA will be complete by May 2015.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2013, Official Report, column 612W, on HM Courts and Tribunals Service, when he plans to update Parliament on the future of HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

Shailesh Vara: As set out in his written ministerial statement on 26 March 2013, the Secretary of State for Justice has asked the Department to look at the way we deliver our court and tribunals services to ensure access to justice is quick and effective while providing value for money for the taxpayer. Officials are continuing to work to develop these proposals and we will of course update Parliament once the proposals have been developed.

Land

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which sites owned by his Department are currently earmarked for disposal; what the current class use is of each site; what the expected planning use is for each site; whether each site already has planning permission for the expected planning use; what the market value of the site is; and whether the site will be sold for the full market value.

Shailesh Vara: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 514W.

Legal Aid Scheme: Students

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many students in receipt of legal aid had their payments (a) reduced or (b) halted as a result of also receiving childcare grants since changes made under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Shailesh Vara: The Legal Aid Agency does not record whether recipients of legal aid are students. In the consideration of legal aid eligibility, the agency assesses a person’s overall financial circumstances. I am therefore unable to provide the figures requested.
	At around £2 billion a year, we have one of the most expensive legal aid systems in the world. We are reforming legal aid so it remains available to those that need it most while getting better value for the hard-working taxpayers that fund it.

Oakwood Prison

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what relevant prior experience each member of senior management working in HM Prison Oakwood possesses.

Jeremy Wright: All senior staff at HM Prison Oakwood have appropriate qualifications and experience relevant to their positions within the establishment.

Pornography

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he intends to implement a ban on pornography depicting rape.

Damian Green: Pornographic images depicting rape are unacceptable and we think they can lead to harmful attitudes towards women. That is why we intend to bring forward legislation criminalising the possession of such images shortly. This reform will be an important part of our wider range of initiatives to protect women from violence and make the internet safer for children.

Prisons: Drugs and Alcoholic Drinks

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will take steps to introduce the HM Prison Kirkham Drug and Rehabilitation programme nationally.

Jeremy Wright: Kirkham prison is helping to support our plans for developing through the gate resettlement services under transforming rehabilitation. It is part of a test in partnership with health services that is being undertaken in nine resettlement prisons in the north-west to enhance drug and alcohol recovery services. The learning will be used to inform wider roll out of the new system and the delivery of substance misuse services to offenders more broadly.

Probation

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the inherent and pre-mitigation risk is to the Transforming Rehabilitation programme from insufficient attention and support from his Department owing to other demands;
	(2)  what the inherent and post-mitigation risk is to the Transforming Rehabilitation programme from insufficient or delayed guidance to probation trusts from his Department;
	(3)  what the inherent and post-mitigation risk is to the Transforming Rehabilitation programme from insufficient capacity in his Department to manage the process owing to their scale and lack of co-ordination between different work streams in his Department;
	(4)  what the inherent and post-mitigation risk is to the Transforming Rehabilitation programme from a failure of the programme to be delivered either in scope or within the time scale set by Ministers.

Jeremy Wright: The Rehabilitation programme adopts a rigorous governance approach to programme delivery. This provides a framework of decision-making and allows effective co-ordination across different work-streams within the Department.
	We are committed to giving trusts all the information, resources and support they need to transition to the new system successfully. For example, comprehensive guidance has been given to trust HR managers on transitioning to the new structures, including the criteria to be used when allocating staff for posts in the new national probation service (NPS) or community rehabilitation companies (CRCs) and the grounds for appeal against assignment. In addition, from 1 April, we will begin to allocate cases according to the future structure of NPS and CRCs and will make the full transition to new IT support systems. More information will continue to be sent to trusts as the programme progresses.
	We have developed and designed the new system through consultation and engagement and are working with operational staff from probation trusts to test the design of the future operational model. We will continue to work closely with trusts to test key aspects of the new system in the run-up to implementation. We are taking a phased approach to implementation and have plans in place to roll out further business readiness tests at key stages of implementation so that we can ensure we are managing the transition to the new system in a safe and measured way which maintains public protection.
	This approach ensures that the Transforming Rehabilitation programme remains on track to deliver these essential reforms.

Unpaid Fines: West Midlands

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many unpaid fines there were in the West Midlands in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the monetary value was of those fines.

Shailesh Vara: The volume and value of financial impositions outstanding in the West Midlands area at the end of September 2013 is set out in the table.
	
		
			  Volume of financial impositions outstanding Value of financial impositions outstanding (£) 
			 End of September 2013 71,494 32,009,111 
		
	
	It is not possible to identify the volume and value outstanding for just the fine element. The amounts above therefore include all elements of financial penalties (excluding confiscation orders): fines, prosecutor costs, compensation and victim surcharge. The financial impositions outstanding include accounts which are being paid by instalments or are not yet due for payment.
	HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) takes the issue of financial penalty enforcement very seriously and is working to ensure that clamping down on defaulters is a continued priority nationwide. At the end of September 2013 collection was higher than the same point in the previous year and the outstanding balance had reduced by the start of the financial year. On average over the last 12 month 69% of accounts have been either closed or are compliant with payment terms by 12 months after imposition.
	HMCTS is taking action to improve performance and are actively seeking an external provider for the future delivery of compliance and enforcement services. This will bring the necessary investment and innovation to significantly improve the collection of criminal financial penalties and reduce the cost of the service to the taxpayer.

Victim Support Schemes

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the cost of support services for road crash victims was in each year between 2010 and 2013; and what the budget for such services is in 2014;
	(2)  what the cost for victims services in each year between 2010 and 2013 was; and what the budget for such services is in 2014.

Damian Green: The Ministry of Justice currently provides more than £50 million funding for services supporting victims of crime. Victim Support receives £38 million of this funding with the remainder distributed to support a range of specialist services including rape support centres, services for adult victims of human trafficking and homicide support.
	From 2014-15 onwards more money than ever before will be available for victims’ services, with a current forecast spend of at least £75 million. From 1 October 2014 Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) will start to commission the majority of services for victims and witnesses, including victim-led restorative justice, based on local priorities and consistent with the requirements of the Victims’ Code. Under local commissioning PCCs will be able to commission support services for victims of road traffic crimes. In parallel we will also work to identify future opportunities for national funding of support for road traffic victims for 2014 onwards.
	The following table shows spend on support services for victims of road crime together with each type of victims’ service by the Ministry of Justice since 2010-11. The column for 2013-14 is based on our current financial forecast which has increased as receipts from offenders have increased:
	
		
			 £ million 
			  2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 (forecast) 
			 Road Traffic 0.05 0.28 0.26 0.24 
			 Victim Support—Core funding for the Witness Service, Community Service and Supportline and Victim Support Homicide Service (including the National Homicide Fund 2010-11 only) 144.25 38.22 38.03 38.25 
			 Homicide Services 0.42 0.54 0.57 0.6 
			 Sexual Violence and Domestic Violence 2.11 7.3 7.52 7.7 
			 Trafficking 1.35 1.5 1.93 2.1 
			 Hate Crime 0.25 0.76 0.76 0.78 
			 Victim and Witness General Fund (Anti-social behaviour, robbery and non specified crime) — 0.62 0.6 0.67 
			 Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) to prepare for local commissioning and Restorative Justice — — — 20.8 
			 Restorative Justice (non PCCs) — — — 1.15 
			 Total 48.43 49.22 49.67 72.29 
			 1 The increase in funding in 2010-11 relates to a one off homicide fund in that year for Victim Support. 
		
	
	We are yet to finalise our 2014-15 allocations with a current forecast spend of at least £75 million. We have however provided Police and Crime Commissioners with indicative budgets totalling £24 million for the commissioning of victims’ services for the final six months of 2014-15 and £6.25 million for Restorative Justice provision.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he intends to reply to question 181504, tabled by the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull North on 6 January 2014 for answer on 9 January 2014; and what the reasons are for the time taken to answer.

Shailesh Vara: I understand that the hon. Member has now received a response to her written parliamentary question and I apologise for the delay. The information requested in question 181504 requires interrogation of the employment tribunals' fees and remission database and development of additional management information reporting tools. Work is under way to develop the necessary reporting tools. I have undertaken to write to the hon. Member as soon as I am able with the information requested.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Biofuels

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which power plants that were awarded a green subsidy will be able to commence biomass production as a result of that subsidy.

Michael Fallon: The list of power plants that are accredited under the RO is available from:
	https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/renewables-obligation-ro
	The Government has yet to award contracts under the Final Investment Decision Enabling for Renewables process. The award of Investment Contracts will take place following the receipt of binding applications from qualified projects in March 2014 and the final affordability assessment.

Boilers: Rural Areas

Mark Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will bring forward proposals to ring-fence funding as part of the boiler replacement scheme for rural pensioners who use oil boilers.

Gregory Barker: The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) has three sub-components: the Carbon Emissions Reduction Obligation (CERO), the Carbon Savings Community Obligation (CSCO) and Affordable Warmth. Affordable Warmth provides dedicated support for boiler replacements for certain eligible households, including some pensioners on low incomes. Under CSCO there is a ring-fence to ensure that at least 15% of activity takes place in rural areas.
	The Government is concerned to ensure that rural and non gas-fuelled households are able to benefit from support under all aspects of ECO. This is an issue that we intend to consider as part of a forthcoming consultation on a number of proposed changes to ECO.

Eggborough Power Station

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the potential change in rail network investment as a result of the closure of the Eggborough plant;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the potential change in investment at Teesport docks as a result of the closure of the Eggborough plant;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the potential change in investment at Immingham docks as a result of the closure of the Eggborough plant.

Michael Fallon: I refer the hon. Member to answer I gave her and the hon. Member for Bassetlaw (John Mann) on 28 January 2014, Official Report, column 517W.

Eggborough Power Station

Linda Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the effect on household bills of the closure of Eggborough power station.

Michael Fallon: Whether or not the closure of a power station would have any impact on household bills is dependent on a number of factors, including the response of the market. If a power station does leave the market, this should result in opportunities for other stations to sell electricity. This includes those stations currently outside of the market. It is therefore not certain that there would be any significant impact on consumer bills should any particular station leave the market.

Eggborough Power Station

Linda Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether all direct employees of Eggborough Power Station are paid above the living wage.

Michael Fallon: The Department does not hold this information.

Eggborough Power Station

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the proportion of UK electricity needs that will be supplied by Eggborough power plant in each of the next five years.

Michael Fallon: The energy generating capacity of Eggborough power station is 1960MW1 which represents around 2%2 of total UK operational generating capacity.
	DECC does not publish a breakdown of forecast generation by individual power stations due to commercial sensitivities. DECC's Updated Energy Projections provides forecasts for electricity generation from Major Power Producers (which include Eggborough) by source including coal (see following table).
	
		
			  2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 
			 Coal (TWh) 127.2 104.3 57.7 47.4 44.7 
			 Total Supplied (TWh) 318.4 313.6 310.4 308.0 307.8 
		
	
	Further information is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updated-energy-and-emissions-projections-2013
	1 DUKES Chapter 5.7 Plant Capacity in the United Kingdom
	2 DUKES Chapter 5.11 Power stations in the United Kingdom (figure end 2012)
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electricity-chapter-5-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes
	(figure for capacity end 2012).

Eggborough Power Station

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change for what reasons his Department did not allocate a green subsidy to Eggborough power plant in the most recent round of subsidies.

Michael Fallon: Government is yet to finalise the award of contracts under the Final Investment Decision Enabling for Renewables process. Eggborough Power Ltd biomass conversion applications were listed under the 16 projects which met the Phase 2 minimum threshold evaluation criteria of the Final Investment Decision Enabling for Renewables process, published on 4 December
	1
	. Although Eggborough was not on the list of the 10 projects that have been assessed as provisionally affordable (published on 19 December), their applications remain in the process. Project rankings may change if project circumstances change or if some projects do not submit binding applications. The final selection of projects and affordability assessment will be carried out following the receipt of binding applications from qualified projects in March 2014.
	1 Further details of the FID Enabling for Renewables process can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/increasing-certainty-for-investors-in-renewable-electricity-final-investment-decision-enabling-for-renewables

Eggborough Power Station

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will estimate the number of jobs dependent on the operation of Eggborough power plant.

Michael Fallon: The Department does not estimate the number of jobs dependent on the operation of individual power plants, including Eggborough.

Eggborough Power Station

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will draw up a contingency plan for regeneration of the area around Eggborough power plant in the event that that plant closes.

Michael Fallon: In circumstances where there is an imminent risk of a business closure that has potential implications for direct and indirect employment, central and local government works together with those affected to ensure the impact on jobs, businesses and communities is mitigated as far as possible.

Energy

Iain McKenzie: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent investment the Government has made into the UK energy infrastructure; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Fallon: Government is providing the policy framework to create an environment which is attractive to private investment in the UK's energy sector.
	The scale of investment is significant, making up over half the total infrastructure investment pipeline in the UK. For electricity, DECC estimates suggest that there has been almost £40 billion investment in the sector since 2010 (to December 2013), covering both generation and networks.
	In 2012, the upstream UK oil and gas industry spent £13 billion on exploration and new developments while operating costs were a further £8 billion. The industry currently supports around 350,000 jobs directly and indirectly, plus another 100,000 in exporting goods and services1.
	1 http://www.oilandgasuk.co.uk/employment.cfm

Energy Companies Obligation

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the amount of payments made by domestic customers to energy companies via their energy bills as at 31 December 2013 as a result of the introduction of the Energy Company Obligation.

Michael Fallon: The Government impact assessment for the current phase of ECO, published in June 2012, estimated the costs of the obligation at around £1.3m pa on average, equating to around £50 per household per year on average. Government. proposes to make changes to ECO and an updated assessment of impacts will be published shortly alongside the consultation document setting out the proposed changes. This will detail the Government's latest view of the costs of the obligation, based on observed market data.

Energy: Competition

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2013, Official Report, column 607W, on energy: competition, on what date he expects that the Annual Competition Assessment will be published.

Michael Fallon: The date of publication is a matter for the relevant competition authorities, Ofgem, the Office for Fair Trading and the Competition and Markets Authority. They have said their report will be published in March 2014.

Energy: Prices

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 983, by which process he calculated that gas bills rose by an average of 12 per cent a year between 2000 and 2010.

Michael Fallon: Gas bills increased by 12.0% a year on average between 2005 and 2010. Average bill changes are calculated as the compound growth over period quoted and take customers paying by standard credit as the typical consumer. Increases are calculated in cash terms.
	Gas bill estimates are available in DECC's statistical publication, Quarterly Energy Prices. These estimates assume a fixed level of gas consumption of 18,000 kWh and are also available online in table 2.3.1:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/annual-domestic-energy-price-statistics

Energy: Prices

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 984, on energy bills, by which process he calculated that electricity bills rose (a) by an average of nine per cent in the previous Parliament and (b) by an average of four per cent since May 2010.

Michael Fallon: Electricity bills increased by 8.8% a year on average between 2005 and 2010.
	Average bill changes are calculated as the compound growth over period quoted and take customers paying by standard credit as the typical consumer. Increases are calculated in cash terms.
	Electricity bill estimates are available in DECC's statistical publication, Quarterly Energy Prices. These estimates assume a fixed level of electricity consumption of 3,300 kWh and are also available online in table 2.2.1:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/annual-domestic-energy-price-statistics

Energy: Prices

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer of 16 January 2014, Official Report, column 983, what estimate his Department has made of (a) the average annual cost increase and (b) the average annual percentage increase in (i) gas and (ii) electricity bills between (A) 1997 and 2010, (B) 2000 and 2010 and (C) 2010 and 2013.

Michael Fallon: The following tables show annual gas and electricity bill estimates, split by method of payment:
	
		
			 Average annual gas bill 
			 £ 
			  Standard credit Direct Debit Prepayment 
			 1997 328 307 349 
			 2000 295 264 311 
			 2005 386 353 401 
			 2010 681 639 683 
			 2013 896 823 890 
		
	
	
		
			 Average annual electricity bill 
			 £ 
			  Standard credit Direct Debit Prepayment 
			 1997 285 277 302 
			 2000 257 245 274 
			 2005 285 269 304 
			 2010 435 398 446 
			 2013 532 491 534 
		
	
	The following tables show the average annual cost increase to gas and electricity bills, over the periods 1997 to 2010, 2000 to 2010, 2005 to 2010 and 2010 to 2013, split by payment method.
	
		
			 Average year on year cost increase in gas bills across interval 
			 £ 
			 Interval Standard credit Direct Debit Prepayment 
			 1997 to 2010 27.15 25.54 25.69 
			 2000 to 2010 38.60 37.50 37.20 
			 2005 to 2010 59.00 57.20 56.40 
			 2010 to 2013 71.67 61.33 69.00 
		
	
	
		
			 Average year on year cost increase in electricity bills across interval 
			 £ 
			 Interval Standard credit Direct Debit Prepayment 
			 1997 to 2010 11.54 9.31 11.08 
			 2000 to 2010 17.80 15.30 17.20 
			 2005 to 2010 30.00 25.80 28.40 
		
	
	
		
			 2010 to 2013 32.33 31.00 29.33 
		
	
	The following tables shows the average annual percentage increase in gas and electricity bills over the periods 1997 to 2010, 2000 to 2010, 2005 to 2010 and 2010 to 2013, split by payment method.
	
		
			 Average year on year percentage increase in gas bills across interval 
			 Percentage 
			 Interval Standard credit Direct Debit Prepayment 
			 1997 to 2010 5.8 5.8 5.3 
			 2000 to 2010 8.7 9.2 8.2 
			 2005 to 2010 12.0 12.6 11.2 
			 2010 to 2013 9.6 8.8 9.2 
		
	
	
		
			 Average year on year percentage increase in electricity bills across interval 
			 Percentage 
			 Interval Standard credit Direct Debit Prepayment 
			 1997 to 2010 3.3 2.8 3.0 
			 2000 to 2010 5.4 5.0 5.0 
			 2005 to 2010 8.8 8.1 8.0 
			 2010 to 2013 6.9 7.3 6.2

Energy: Prices

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the potential of hydraulic fracturing to reduce energy bills in the United Kingdom.

Michael Fallon: Shale gas represents an exciting new potential energy resource for the UK, and could play an important part in our energy mix. It makes sense to explore the potential for shale gas production in the UK.
	The impact of shale gas production on energy bills will be largely determined by production costs. Though it is important to note that the wholesale gas price is just one factor that influences retail gas prices. Little drilling or testing has taken place in Britain's shale deposits, so it is not yet possible to estimate how much shale gas or oil may be practically and commercially recoverable. It is therefore too early to make an assessment of the impact of UK shale development on prices. Globally, there are some scenarios in a report prepared by Navigant Consulting1 in which large volumes of shale gas production could exert downward pressure on gas wholesale gas prices.
	Shale gas has the potential to provide the UK with wider benefits such as increased tax revenues, greater energy security, growth and jobs.
	1 The full report is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/223492/navigant_consulting_report.pdf

European Commission

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will set out his Department's priorities for discussions with the European Commission over the 2014 Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister for Europe, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) on 30 January 2014, Official Report, column 625W.

Fracking

Mark Menzies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to ensure that funds raised from the shale gas community benefit are distributed to residents closest to the drilling sites.

Michael Fallon: The UK Onshore Operators Group, the representative body for the shale gas industry, have committed to provide £100,000 for a fractured well site during exploration and 1% of the revenues once the site goes into commercial production. It is encouraging that UKOOG will be working with the UK Communities Foundation independently to manage and distribute the exploration funding in a new pilot scheme and that communities will have the lead role in identifying local priorities for the funds. The next step is for residents to feed into the consultation to be undertaken by UKOOG on how benefits during production phase are best distributed, which industry has estimated could amount to between £5 and £10 million.

Fracking

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the level of total shale gas reserves in the United Kingdom.

Michael Fallon: We have published an estimate of the shale gas resources contained in the Bowland-Hodder formation in northern England, and similar studies are in hand for the Weald area of southern England and for the Midland Valley of Scotland. It is not possible at this early stage of UK exploration for shale gas to estimate the reserves, that is, the amount of the resource that might be technically or economically producible.

Fracking

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will take steps to ensure that any proposals brought forward by the Government to change the law on trespassing to facilitate fracking will not affect local property rights.

Michael Fallon: Shale gas and oil operations involve hydraulic fracturing in wells drilled over a mile down, which at that depth are highly unlikely to have any discernible impacts closer to the surface.
	Like any other industrial activity, oil and gas operations require access permission from landowners. At present, landowners do not have an absolute right to block underground drilling. If they refuse to grant consent, the operator can apply to the Secretary of State for a referral of the matter to the courts, which have the power to grant access rights to the operator.
	The Government is currently considering whether this existing route is fit for purpose, and what impact this could have on the development of shale gas. We have not yet made a decision on what actions we may take, if any.

Fuel Oil

Andrew Bingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress he has made on ensuring that off-grid households have access to affordable heating fuels in winter.

Michael Fallon: The Government believes very strongly that domestic consumers living off the mains gas-grid should have access to secure and affordable fuel supplies to heat their homes.
	DECC has worked with both the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers and UKLPG on developing their codes of practice, which set out guidelines for their members to raise standards and take all reasonable steps to ensure that vulnerable consumers are not left without fuel this winter.
	DECC have also worked with the industry and consumer representative organisations to provide consumer guidance on setting up or joining oil buying clubs, in order for communities to save money through bulk buying.
	The Buy Oil Early campaign, co-ordinated by DECC, was launched last September by industry and consumer groups, in order to encourage heating oil consumers to stock up before winter and to join oil-buying groups. I wrote to MPs in October to encourage them to support these initiatives in their constituencies.
	I intend to hold a third Ministerial Roundtable meeting on heating oil and LPG in May, to assess how off-gas grid consumers fared over the winter and whether further action in this area is needed.

Fuel Poverty

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the total amount per year spent on households in fuel poverty for supplier-funded energy efficiency polices in (a) Great Britain, (b) England and (c) each of the other constituent parts of the UK from 2008-209 to date;
	(2)  what estimate his Department has made of the total number of fuel poor households (a) benefiting from and (b) taken out of fuel poverty as a result of energy efficiency measures installed under supplier-funded energy efficiency programmes in each year since 2008-09 in (i) Great Britain and (ii) each constituent part of the UK.

Gregory Barker: Fuel poverty, as a devolved matter, is defined differently across the constituent parts of Great Britain and the UK. Targeting fuel poor households through supplier-led energy efficiency policies necessarily requires a balance between pin-pointing only those households that are fuel poor with practical delivery challenges. As a result, energy supplier-led energy efficiency obligations since 2008-09 have used receipt of certain benefits as proxies for low income and vulnerable households at risk of fuel poverty.
	Estimates of the total level of resources directed at fuel poor households using these proxies have already been provided in response to written questions, specifically on 1 July 2013, Official Report, column 422W and 17 December 2013, Official Report, column 610W. Supplier-led energy efficiency policies with a fuel poverty focus since 2008-09 have been specified in terms of target outcomes, for example a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, rather than expenditure targets. These targets have also been specified at Great Britain level without sub-national targets. As a result, it is not possible to produce accurate estimates of expenditure under supplier-led energy efficiency schemes below Great Britain level and therefore no estimate has been made.
	Estimates of the number of fuel poor households eligible for support using benefits proxies; the number of eligible households supported and/or the number of measures estimated to be delivered to eligible households; and the change in the number of households in fuel poverty as a result of supplier-led energy efficiency policies are published in the relevant Impact Assessments for the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (Super Priority Group)1, the Community Energy Saving Programme2, and the Green Deal and Energy Company Obligation (Affordable Warmth and Carbon Saving Communities)3.
	1 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/48491/121-iacertextension.pdf
	Fuel poverty impact estimates of CERT can be found at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121217150421/http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/what_we_do/consumers/saving_energy/analysis/analysis.aspx
	2 Available at:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100404202125/http://man270109a.decc.gov.uk/Media/viewfile.ashx?FilePath=Consultations/CESP/1_20090710121840_e_@@_CESPIA.pdf&filetype=4
	3 Available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/42984/5533-final-stage-impact-assessment-for-the-green-deal-a.pdf

Fuel Poverty

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what support he plans to provide to (a) families, (b) businesses and (c) individuals who are struggling to pay their heating bills this winter; and what financial support he is providing to each local authority in England and Wales for this purpose.

Michael Fallon: The Government has put in place a range of measures to support families, businesses and individuals who are struggling to pay their heating bills this winter, including:
	A £50 reduction in household energy bills on average by driving down the cost of the green levies on consumer bills.
	£135 off electricity bills for 2 million vulnerable households under the warm home discount.
	Making between £100 and £300 available tax-free to help pay heating bills for those born on or before 5 January 1952 under the winter fuel payment.
	Providing £25 for every week of a cold spell through cold weather payments-last year 5.8 million payments were made.
	£900,000 this year for Big Energy Saving Network, which is helping the most vulnerable get the best deal for them and access to available help, with £1 million further funding committed for the coming financial year.
	One or more ECO measures being installed in around 400,000 properties up to the end of November 2013.
	In October 2012 DECC offered English local authorities the opportunity to bid for funding to reduce the extent of fuel poverty in their area, primarily through the provision of support for improvements to the thermal efficiency of dwellings. £31 million was awarded to 60 projects involving 169 local authorities across the country.

Housing: Insulation

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions his Department has had with Southampton City council on its plans to clad solid wall homes under the Energy Companies Obligation.

Gregory Barker: There have been no discussions held with Southampton City council on this matter.

Housing: Insulation

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions his Department has had with Affinity Homes on its plans to clad solid wall homes under the Energy Companies Obligation.

Gregory Barker: There have been no discussions held with Affinity Homes on this matter.

Housing: Insulation

Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions his Department has had with Nottingham City Homes on its plans to clad solid wall homes under the Energy Companies Obligation.

Gregory Barker: Following an approach from Nottingham City council, I met them to discuss their project and how they are taking it forward, including options for financing.

National Grid

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish and place in the Library copies of all correpondence between his Department and National Grid concerning the proposed 400 kV connection from Cefn Coch to Lower Frankton.

Michael Fallon: National Grid met with DECC officials in July 2013 to present a factual update on the project. Copies of the correspondence associated with this meeting will be placed in the Libraries of the House. DECC officials did not offer any views on the project.

Natural Gas: Imports

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what percentage of the UK's natural gas consumption was imported in (a) 2000, (b) 2005 and (c) 2013.

Michael Fallon: The following table shows key natural gas data for 2000, 2005 and 2013 to September (the latest available data) for the UK. The table shows the proportion of demand (demand includes consumption by industry, electricity generation, and domestic use) met through imports and the proportion met through net imports (the UK is a gas exporter as well as an importer).
	
		
			 GWh/percentage 
			  Natural gas 
			  2000 2005 2013 to September 
			 Supply    
			 Production 1,260,168 1,025,232 314,544 
			 Imports 26,032 173,328 389,895 
			 Exports -146,342 -96,181 -86,777 
			 Net imports -120,310 77,147 303,118 
			 Total demand 1,125,530 1,103,538 617,919 
			     
			 Percentage imports 2 16 63 
			 Percentage net imports 1- 7 49 
			 1 Net exporter

Radioactive Materials: Transport

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which Government departments, non-departmental public bodies and executive agencies hold electronic records of transports of (a) fissile and (b) other radioactive material (i) within the UK, (ii) imported into the UK, (iii) exported from the UK and (iv) moved in transit through the UK.

Michael Fallon: The Office for Nuclear Regulation, which regulates these transports in the UK, holds certain electronic records relating to the transports, where appropriate. DECC and the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Department for Transport, Department of Health, Ministry of Defence, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, HM Revenue and Customs, or their relevant agencies, also hold records relating to transports, imports or exports, where appropriate. The Devolved Administrations have similar arrangements. The records may be separate or the same depending on their relevance to the organisation in question.

Radioactive Materials: Transport

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether (a) the Office for Nuclear Regulation, (b) the Department for Transport and (c) the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills compile separate electronic records of transports of (a) fissile and (b) other radioactive material (i) within the UK, (ii) imported into the UK, (iii) exported from the UK and (iv) moved in transit through the UK.

Michael Fallon: The Office for Nuclear Regulation, which regulates these transports in the UK, holds certain electronic records relating to the transports, where appropriate. DECC and the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Department for Transport, Department of Health, Ministry of Defence, Foreign, and Commonwealth Office, HM Revenue and Customs, or their relevant agencies, also hold records relating to transports, imports or exports, where appropriate. The Devolved Administrations have similar arrangements. The records may be separate or the same depending on their relevance to the organisation in question.

Radioactive Materials: Transport

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what transports of radioactive material (a) within the UK, (b) imported into the UK, (c) exported from the UK and (d) moved in transit through the UK there have been in each of the last 10 years; and if he will publish and place in the Library all non-confidential records his Department holds on each such transport.

Michael Fallon: Over 500,000 packages containing radioactive materials, some of which contain fissile material, are transported to, from and within the UK each year. General information on this can be found on the Office for Nuclear Regulation's website at:
	www.hse.gov.uk/Nuclear/transport/
	The Department is routinely informed of only the most significant transports and this information is not made publicly available for security reasons.

Re-employment

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many staff who have been made redundant or retired from his Department have subsequently been re-employed by his Department since May 2010.

Gregory Barker: Since May 2010 two people, who had retired from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), were subsequently rehired on short term contracts as contractors which are now completed.
	No people have been made redundant from DECC.

Renewable Energy

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what criteria his Department uses for allocating green subsidies to power plants.

Gregory Barker: Financial support is currently provided by Government to incentivise the deployment of renewable energy in the UK under the Renewable Obligations (RO), the Feed-in Tariffs (FITs) scheme and the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI). These schemes are administered by Ofgem and further information on each scheme, including eligibility criteria, can be found on their website at:
	https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes
	Plans for allocation of Contracts for Difference (CfDs), which will provide financial support in the future for the deployment of low carbon technologies, were set out in the Electricity Market Reform Delivery Plan, This can be viewed online at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electricity-market-reform-delivery-plan

Renewable Energy

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which power plants in the UK applied for the most recent round of green subsidies.

Michael Fallon: Applications for an Investment Contract under Phase 2 of the Final Investment Decision Enabling for Renewables process is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fid-enabling-applications-for-investment-contracts

Renewable Energy

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will make an assessment of the financial sustainability of power plants that did not receive green subsidies in the most recent round.

Michael Fallon: Government has yet to award Investment Contracts under Final Investment Decision Enabling for Renewables. This will take place following the receipt of binding applications in March 2014 from projects which qualified under phase 2 of the selection process and the final affordability assessment.
	It is not for Government to determine the financial sustainability of power plants which did not qualify under phase 2; this is a commercial matter.

Renewable Energy: Heating

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what information his Department holds on the effect of heat pumps installed in domestic premises on electricity bills for those premises.

Michael Fallon: DECC is conducting a metering programme for heat pumps installed under the Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) scheme.
	We are currently completing an analysis of this metering data which considers the bill impacts of installing heat pumps on premises with different counterfactual heating systems. This preliminary analysis is currently going through quality assurance and will be published very shortly. We expect to be able to continue to improve this analysis over time as more data is available.

Renewable Energy: Heating

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the latest date is on which it is feasible for the Government to shut down usage of the national gas grid to decarbonise heat.

Michael Fallon: Decarbonising heat does not necessarily require the gas distribution grid to be shut down, especially if gas itself can be decarbonised through the use of biomethane, synthetic gases or hydrogen. The Government's Heat Strategy, published last year, envisages different sections of the housing stock being decarbonised using different technologies and at different times. In all cases, reducing demand for heating is the first thing to do. To meet the remaining demand, different solutions will apply depending on location.

Supply Estimates

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 3 June 2013, Official Report, column 952W, on supply estimates, what programmes, projects and policies are funded under the heading New Nuclear in the second table in 2013-14.

Michael Fallon: Expenditure on New Nuclear, under subhead B in the 2013-14 Main Estimate, relates solely to expenditure by the Office for Nuclear Development (OND).

Wind Power: Scotland

Glyn Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will publish and place in the Library all correspondence between his Department and the Scottish Government on the recently decided Court of Session decision Sustainable Shetland v Scottish Ministers [2013] CSOH 158.

Gregory Barker: I am today placing in the Libraries of the House my letter of 7 November 2013, to Fergus Ewing MSP, Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism, the Scottish Government.
	Correspondence between officials has not been made public, due to its confidential and/or privileged nature.